Ministry of Education of the Azerbaijan

Republic
Baku Girls University

Chingiz Garasharli

Language and Culture

(English-speaking Countries)
Baku - 2014

2
 Chingiz Garasharli

Reviewers: A.Hacıyeva
professor
K.Jafarova
Associate professor

Editor: M.Y.Gaziyeva
professor

3
 Contents

Preface……………………………………
………...……..4

1. Language and
Reality………………………….…….13

2. Foreign Cultures as a source of national

lexicon…..32

3. The English Language

abroad………………………54

4. Renaissance and the English

language……………...87

5. Mythology and superstitions….

……………………105

6. Religion as a source of word

formation……………128

7. Slangs – the depth of

4
language……………………..141

8. Onomasticon as link between the

culture and the
language…………………………………
…………..145

5
 Preface

The language expresses facts, ideas or events

that are communicable because they refer to a
stock of knowledge about the world that other
people share. Words also reflect their authors’
attitudes and beliefs, their point of view, that
are also those of others. In both cases, language
expresses cultural reality.
But members of a community or social
group do not only express experience; they also
create experience through language. They give
meaning to it through the medium they choose
to communicate with one another, for example,
speaking on the telephone or face-to-face,
writing a letter or sending an e-mail message,
reading the newspaper or interpreting a graph
or a chart. They way in which people use the
spoken, written or visual medium itself creates
meanings that are understandable to the group
they belong to, for example, through a
speaker's tone of voice, accent, conversational
style, gestures and facial expressions. Through
all its verbal and nonverbal aspects, language
embodies cultural reality.
Finally, language is a system of signs having
6
a cultural value. Speakers identify themselves
and others through their use of language; they
view their language as a symbol of their social
identity. The prohibition of its use is often
perceived by its speakers as a rejection of their
social group and their culture. Thus we can say
that language symbolizes cultural reality.
Some social scientists consider that
language without culture would not be
possible.Language simultaneously reflects
culture,and is influenced and shaped by it.In
the broadest sense,it is also the symbolic
representation of a people,since it comprises
their historical and cultural backgrounds,as
well as their approach to life and their ways of
living and thinking. A language is a part of a
culture and a culture is a part of a language; the
two are intricately interwoven so that one
cannot separate the two without losing the
significance of either language or culture.In a
word,culture and language are inseparable.
Some people say that language is the mirror of
culture, in the sense that language and people
can see a culture through its language.Another
metaphor used to symbolize language and
culture is the iceberg.The visible part is the
7
language, with a small part of culture;the
greater part lying hidden beneath the surface,is
the invinsible aspect of culture.
Everything we say in language form we use
has meanings, designative or sociative,
denotative or connotative. Every language form
we use has meanings, carries meanings that are
not in the same sense because it is associated
with culture and culture is more extensive than
language. People of different cultures can refer
to different things while using the same
language forms. For example, when one says
lunch, an Englishman may be referring to
hamburger or pizza, but a Chinese man will
most probably be referring to steamed bread or
rice. The word dog in English,and the character
gou in Chinese, refer to the same kind of
animal. However, most English people
associate dog with man's best friend,a good
companion, being kept as a pet, together with
many commendatory idioms, such as lucky
dog. Most Chinese people, by contrast,
associate gou with watchdogs, defending the
household from thieves, a noisy animal,
together with such derogatory idioms as gou tui
zi (hired thug). Being culturally loaded, English
8
words and their Chinese translation (or vice
versa) are seldom equivalents, and often give
rise to different associations or images.1
Every language reflects the cultural
dimensions of the people who speak that
language. Differences between cultures give
rise the appearance of specific national
conceptions in their way of thinking and in the
expressions of these specifities in their
language. The language is inseparable from the
social life of the people, their psychology,
mythology, traditions, superstitions, literature
and history. All together they create the
national world of a given people, Therefore
without a profound knowledge about the socio-
cultural lifestyle of any people, the signs of
their lifestyle in the language cannot be
understood by the representatives of other
peoples, having completely different socio-
cultural dimensions.
The words and expressions reflecting the
world of a concrete people are usually called
the linguistic units without lexical eguivalents
in other languages. They are also known under
the term of “reality”. Having a corresponding
1
Language and Culture. Oxford University Press, 2009, p-21.

9
knowledge about the words without lexical
eguivalents in the native language is of an
utmost importance for communication with the
English speaking people, for reading English
literature, and specially for translators, who
have to convey the exact meanings of the
linguistic realities .For instance, the New
Zealandian health stamp can reveal its meaning
only through the knowledge of its assignment.
Health stamp denotes the stamps, issued every
year and the income derived from its sale is
partially spent as a financial support for the
education of those children, whose training is
hard and requires much care.
The British public school denotes a close,
elitarian private school while in the USA it
denotes a state school without payment.
The expression spend - a - holic is used to
denote a man who is fond of spending much
money on shopping. Used in American
English, this expression is not understandable
in other variants of the English language.
Words and expressions contain detailed
information about cultural associations
connected with the beliefs or traditions
sometimes with well-known stories, and
10
sometimes with historical or political events.
They are also connected with particular aspects
oa the life of English-speaking peoples.

11
 The relationship between language and
culture has been dealt with by many
researchers. According to E.Sapir, «language is
a guide to social reality… Human beings do
not live in the objective world alone, nor in the
world of social activity as ordinarily
understood, but are very much at the mercy of
the particular language which has become a
medium of expression for their society»1.
A direct connection between cultural reality
and their reflection in language was mentioned
in the book «Metaphors we live by» by
G.Lakoff and M.Johnson. They conclude that
«culture is encoded not only in the semantic
structures of a language, but also in the
idiomatic expressions that both reflect and
direct the way we think. Different languages
predispose their speakers to view reality in
different ways through the different metaphors
they use2.
The linguistic environment within which
words carry cultural semantic meaning consists
of the linguistic metaphors that have
1
Сапир Е. Ланэуаэе, Ъултуре aнд Персоналитй
Университй оф Ъалифорниа Пресс, 2009, п,162.
2
Лакофf Э., Жощнсон М. Метапщорс wе ливе bй.
Университй оф Ъщиъаэо Пресс, 1980, п.3.

12
accumulated over time in a community’s store
of semantic knowledge. Each language has its
own metaphors, that provide semantic cohesion
within its boundaries3.
Language learning is closeoly related to the
so-called cultural layer of lexicon that requires
both from translators and the learners of a
language a great deal of knowledge without
which it would be difficult to master the lexico-
semantical system of a language. All languages
interconnected with a large cultural experience
of their speakers are rich in realities and
connotations based on cultural differences.
Languages are shaped under the influence of
cultural, psychological, religious, mythological
and other social factors, generating in the
language numerous culturally coloured words
and expressions that function as stylistic
devices. Such Lexical units are also referred to
realities or words without lexical equivalents in
other languages.
Realities conneced with the life-style and
traditions of a given nation serve as a great
source enriching vocabulary with specific
3
Крамсъщ Ъ. Ланэуаэе and Culture. Охфорд Университй
Пресс, 2009, п. 20.

13
expressions and connotations. The semantics of
such lexical units is only understood by the
representatives of a given nation as it refers to
their life experience. For instance, the
expression Gretna Green Marriage is accepted
by the English as denoting an easy way of
marriage. Gretna Green is a village in South
Scotland on the border with England. Until
1940, the marriage laws were less strict in
Scotland than in England, and so many young
English couples, whose parents did no want
them to marry ran away to get married in
Gretna Green.1
As this example demonstrates, language is
not isolated from the life-style and traditions of
a given nation, and the linguistic realities refer
to the field where the language and culture are
merged.
In their stylistic load realities can function as
lexical stylistic devices in the language. Such
lexion includes various lexico-semantical
layers, used to produce expressiveness,
emotions. Realities with stylistic colour emerge
under the influence of habits and traditions,
socio-political life, religion and mythology, etc.
1
Ланэуаэе and Culture, p.579.

14
 For instance, Punch and Judy, the
personages of American puppit theatre in
connection with some of their physical and
moral features, have become to be used as
stylistic devices. The optimistic character of
Punch (from Italian Punchinello) gave rise to
the expression as pleased as Punch with the
meaning «rather satisfied», «rather proud».
The figure Pooh-Bah from American
literature («Lord-High-Everything-Else») has
given rise to a specific American expression
Pooh-Bah with the meaning «self-content», a
person «having high opinion of himself».
Realities in the language have various
sources-cultural differences, life style, mental,
psychological dimensions, mythology, etc. All
these factors have jointly influenced the
enrichment of the English language with the
so-called coloured lexicon.
Strong emotional colour is observed in the
religious terms once borrowed into English
from Latin or Greek. Devil, a Latin borrowing,
for instance, has become a component of
numerous expressions in the English language.
It is often used to denote a person of a strong
feeling: You lucky devil.
15
 The word devil is observed in numerous
slangs denoting displeasure: What the devil
happened? Like the devil «with great speed,
force». The devil to pay: there will be the devil
to pay.
It also denotes a rude reply showing strong
disagreement: John says he’ll leave early
today» - «The devil he will».
In American English «to devil» means
«cooking in a very hot-tasting thick liquid”:
devilled chicken eggs.
Derivations of the word devil has also
acquired some emotional colours. For instance,
devilish means «very bad» or «very difficult»
devilish schemes; a devilish problem to solve.
Devilishly, used by uper-class people, has
aquired a gammatical colour: «very»: it was
devilishly hard work climbing the mountain.
American devilment or devilry mean bad
wild behavior that usually causes trouble: that
child is always busy with some devilment or
other.
Numerous Americanisms borrowed from
aboriginal languages have achieved
connotations in American English:
Pow-wow, a borrowing of Indian origin
16
initially meant a priest or a medicine man.
However within 50 years it changed its
meaning several times. One of its derivative
meanings was «ceremony accompanied by
magic practice, feasting and dancing”. A
hundred years later it came to be used in its
present meaning – «Indian council» or «a
conference of any kind»
The story of the expressions mugwump also
demonstrates how words can have lives of their
own. It originates from mugquomp, an Indian
word denoting «great chief». Later it gained an
ironical meaning used to ridicule the
breakaway Republicans in relation to a member
of that party. Later it started to denote an
independent party member, at the same time a
politician who straddles an issue or is ready to
support either side.
Mythology is another source to enrich the
English vocabulary with culturally exotic
lexicon. The names of legendary personages
have influenced the appearance of stylistically
colored expressions. The expression to hold out
an olive branch, for instance, is an expressive
way of denoting the notion of making a sign of
peace. According to mythology of the flood in
17
the Old Testament of the Bible, Noah let a
dove fly free from the ark and the bird returned
with a small branch from an olive tree. This
meant that God forgave people and decided to
stop the flood. Hence the olive branch began
denoting the return of peace between God and
the human race, and strated to be used as an
stylistic, more experessive device of denoting
peace.
The English language is rich in numerous
highly expressive means, associated with
mythological personages and beliefs.
The verb gorgonize, for instance, is
associated with the Gorgons, the mythological
three sisters who had snakes for hair and a gaze
so terrifying that a mortal who looked into their
eyes was turned to stone. Medusa, the most
famous of the three, was beheaded by Perseus.
The head of the gorgon was often depicted in
Greek art in a highly stylized manner. At
present a gorgon can mean a terrifying or ugly
woman. The verb to gorgonize means to
paralyze by fear, that is synonym of the verbs
to terrify, to horrify. However to gorgonize
having a mythological colour, denotes the
strongest degree of fear.
18
 The word demonic is associated with the
mythological daimones («divine powers»),
which were believed to be intermediate
between Gods and men or often the spirits of
the dead.
In modern English the words demoniac or
demonic suggests possession by an evil spirit.
As a noun demoniac refers to one who is
possessed by a demon.
Connotations with stylistic colour are also
observed in the English onomasticon. We are
ofthen faced with toponyms used in stylistic
functions. This semantic process is mainly the
result of the writer’s creative activity. They
intensify the expressiveness in the text. Such
toponyms with their literary influence, their
humorous nature, ethnic character, etc. serve as
stylistic devices being often used as idioms
such as: carry coals to Newcastle («to bring
someone to a place which has plenty of such
things already»), grin like Cheshire cat («to
smile or grin inscrutably»), meet one’s
Waterloo («to be defeated»), etc.
A lot of idiomatic expressions are associated
with people’s names and surnames, places in
the city, names of nationalities; proper names:
19
before you could say Jack Robinson («very
quickly»), doubting Thomas (a person who
refuses to believe without clear proof), Mister
Right or Miss Right (the person one would like
to marry, a perfect match); names of
nationalities: double Dutch (completely
unintelligible language), French leave
(departure without goodbye), go Dutch (to pay
for oneself in a restaurant, movie, theatre),
Indian summer (a period of warm weather in
autumn), etc.
Language is bound up with culture in
complex ways. The words and expressions
people utter refer to common experience,
tradition, religious and a mythological beliefs,
superstitions, etc. «They express facts, ideas or
events that refer to the culture of a certain
people, to their cultural reality… Language is a
system of signs that is seen as having itself a
cultural value»1.
Being inseparably tied with the national
culture, the culturally coloured lexicon
functions in the language as denotative and
connotative realities requiring specific methods
1
Крамсъщ Ъ. Ланэуаэе анд Ъултуре. Охфорд Университй
Пресс, 2009, п.3.

20
and ways of translation into the native
language.

21
 1. Language and Reality

Culturally coloured lexicon or language

realities occur in the form of words,
expressions, idioms, slangs, clichés, etc.,
containing information about all spheres of life
and history of English-speaking peoples.

British Realities

A number of language realities reflect

traditions. Gretna Green marriage, for
instance, is understood in Britain as 'an easy
way of marriage'. The expression is derived
from the name of the village Gretna Green
located on English-Scotish border. Young
people who wanted to marry easily not being
required formalities used to visit that village.
Realities covering all spheres of the British
lifestyle are also observed in the British
cuisine. For instance, ploughman 's lunch a
light breakfast or dinner containing cheese,
butter and bread, fresh tomatoes, salad, fish, etc
is usually served in English pubs.
Or Gaelic coffee is a specific Irish cuisine
22
accompanied with whiskey, sour cream and
sugar.
Shepherds pie or cottage pie, consisting of
potato and meat, are among preferred meals.
Specific American meals made of squash,
pumpkin, sweet potatoes, pecan nuts, peanuts,
cranberry, blueberry, etc, are of Indian origin.
Pumpkin pie, roast turkey with cranberry sauce
and sweet potatoes were first served on
Thanksgiving day by early American
immigrants.
A great number of British realities are
observed to be historically coloured:
A Square meal. The saying having a square
meal comes from the English Royal Navy
during the time of Nelson. In order to stop the
plates/dishes slipping around on the table when
the ship was at sea, four pieces of wood were
nailed to the benches in the shape of a square to
stop the plates from slipping... hence having a
square meal'
Sincere. The word "sincere" has some
interesting roots.One story is that it comes from
the ancient marble quarries of Rome.
Apparently unscrupulous stone dealers covered
the marble's imperfection with wax. The
23
practice eventually became illegal, as the
Roman Empire certified that all marble must be
"sine cera" or "sincerus", meaning without
wax-genuine. So, to be sincere is to be genuine.
Fortnight. Hardian's Wall,built to guard the
Romans northern England border against the
marauding Scots, had forts situated at regular
intervals along its length. Every two weeks the
soldiers got to sleep inside them and this is
where our term for two weeks, Fortnight comes
from.
To let your hair down. In Tudor England the
ladies wore their hair up, and in “wimples”
Beneath their hair was piled high and pinned.
Naturally, in the bed chamber, caps and hats,as
well as other garmenst,were disposed of. lt was
a time for wanton behaviour and abandonslent,
but only in the bedroom, and in private. Hence,
letting one's hair down was a practical as well
as a symbolic thing.
Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass
monkey. This very common description of the
British winter weather actually comes from the
times when the navy fought with cannon balls.
These were stored on deck,besides the actual
cannon. With the rolling of the ship the balls
24
would roll around the ship. They were welded
to small stable upright called,a brass monkey.
In the bitter cold the weld could snap and they
let loose the balls!
Dear old Blighty. Blighty is another
nickname for Britain.In the first World War,
soldiers would pray for a “blighty”. This was a
wound that would get them back to Blighty for
treatment.Some people say it's a corruption of
beauty but more probably its derived from a
Hindu word meaning 'stranger'and picked up
by the British while ruling India.
Don't throw the baby out with the bath
water. Most people got married in June
because they took their yearly bath in May and
were still smelling pretty good by June.
However, they were starting to smell, so brides
carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the
B.O.Baths were a big tub filled with hot water.
The man of the house had the privilege of nice
clean hot water. Then all the other sons and
men,then the women and finally the children.
Last of all were the babies.By then the water
was so dirty you could actually lose someone
in it.
It's raining cats and dogs. Houses had
25
thatched roofs, thick straw pile high. lt was the
only place for animals to get warm, so all the
pets, dogs, cats and other small animals,mice
rats, bugs, lived in the roof. When it rained, it
became slippery and sometimes the animals
would slip and fall off the roof.
This is also the reason why four poster beds
developed. The idea of the roof was to keep
from nasty things falling into your open mouth
when asleep! The side curtains kept out the
drafts..
Burning a candle at both ends. Once upon a
time the only light in a house was provided by
the taper .This was kept alight usually on a
holder beside the fire. It provided a small
amount of light.If special visitors came and
more light was demanded then the taper was lit
both ends.
Rule of thumb. Before thermometers were
invented, brewers would dip a thumb or finger
into the mix to find the right temperature for
adding yeast.Too cold,and the yeast wouldn't
grow. Too hot, and the yeast would die.This
thumb in the beer is where we get the phrase
"rule of thumb".
Another derivation comes from the ancient
26
custom that men could beat their wives but
only with a stick no thicker than their thumb!
Thus having someone under your thumb.
Mind your own business. Our ancestors
personal hygiene left much room for
improvement. As a result, many women and
men had developed acne scars by adulthood.
The women would spread bee's wax over their
facial skin to smooth out their complexions.
When they were speaking to each other, if a
woman began to stare at another woman's face
she was told mind your own bee's wax.
Mind your P's and Q's. In old England ale
was drunk in pints and quarts. So when
customers got unruly, the innkeeper would yell
at them to mind their own pints and quarts and
settle down.
Wet your whistle. Many years ago, pub
frequenters had a whistle baked into the rim or
handle of their ceramic mugs. When they
needed a refill, they used the whistle to get
some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase
inspired by this practice.
I’m feeling fair to middling. It comes from
cotton grading used in the late 19th century to
early 20th century in the southern United
27
States. "Fair"was one of the lowest grades of
cotton and "middling" was the next lowest used
when a farmer brought his cotton to market!
"Honeymoon. It was the accepted practice in
Anglo-Saxon England years ago that for a
month after the wedding, the bride's father
would supply his son-in-law with all the mead
he could drink (it was supposed to make the
wife fertile and the husband virile).Mead is a
honey wine, and because their calendar was
lunar based,this period was called the "honey
month" or what we know today as the
"honeymoon".
Goodnight sleep tight. In Shakespeare's
time,mattresse were secured on bed frames by
ropes. When you pulled on the ropes the
mattress tightened,making the bed firmer to
sleep on. That's where the phrase "goodnight,
sleep tight" came from.
One for the road. During the middle ages
and mediaeval period, the condemned were
taken from London city gaols to Tyburn Hill
for execution.En route, along what is today's
Oxford Street, the cart stopped and they were
allowed one final drink at a country inn situated
on the road. The one they were drinking was for
28
the road to death.
A great number of culturally coloured words
and expressions have emerged in Amercan,
Australian and other variants of the English
language.

American realities

After Europeans settled the new world a new

variant of the English language with a great
lexical difference came into being.The
difference originates from various sources,
both linguistic and extralinguistic. The
linguistic factors were associated with the
participation of various British dialectal words
which in the course of the formation of
American English changed into literary words
in American English and specific American
word formation.
A number of American literary words at
present function as dialectisms in British
English: loan is an English archaism while in
the USA it is a literary word. The word to guess
used to mean "to consider", "to think" is archaic
for modern British English while it is literary
for Americans.
29
 A great source for lexical difference is
American word-building. For instance, the
word motel was built with combination of the
first part of motor and the second part of the
word hotel. The word denotes a rest place on
wheel. Or the word smog consists of the first
element of smoke and the last letter of fog.
Extralinguistic factors influencing American
English are the following. American nation had
a specific history.The English language first
appered in North America in early 17th c.The
first American colony was established in 1607.
The new way of life became a significant
source for a great number of new words in
American English. We can see many words
which denote the America type of flora and
fauna:moose (American deer), live-oak a type
of Virginian oak,gap-a mountainus passage,
Backwoods -a deep part of the forest,
buffalo, caribou (deer), opossum (rat) Many of
these words gave rise to appearance of
American jargons, phraseological units which
are used in emotive language to buffalo "to lie",
to get smb. buffaloed "to lie", to play opossum,
to play possum "to pretend to be ill","to pretend
to be dead"
30
 Many American words reflect the lifestyles
of the first Americans, their economic life:
back-settlement -a far away settlement in the
thick part of the forest, lot-a part of land.
Many Americanisms were borrowed from
Indian languages. For instance, with the Indian
word squaw (woman) Americans have in mind
Indian women.
Pow-wow was adopted very early to mean a
priest or medicine man.
Within 50 years it was used to mean a
ceremony in which magic was practiced
together with feasting and dancing.
A hundred years later it had moved closer to
its present English meaning and was used to
describle an Indian council. At present it
denotes a meeting of any kind.
The story of mugwump also shows how
words can have lives of their own. lt came from
muqquomp, an Indian word meaning "great
chief'. After that the word gained a more joky
meaning and in 1884 it was used by Repubican
Party supporters of James G.Blaine to ridicule
the breakaway Republicans who had thrown in
their lot with Grover Clevelend, the
Democratic nominee. In fact, the joke went
31
against them because clevelend won. Since
then mugwump has been used, often
approvingly in American politics to denote an
independent, but also a politician who straddles
an issue or is ready to support either side.
Interesting words from Indian languages
have also been joined by phrases.In our own
time business executives might talk about going
"smoking a pipe of peace" It is connected with
the agreement of two warrying sides who as a
sign of peace smoke a pipe of peace.
Further in the past fire-water for whisky was
a translation of an Indian word.
The first settlers also adopted thousands of
Indian place-name.26 states have Indian
names: Arizona-arizonac "little river" Idaho-
Edahoe "light on mountain", Illinois - "the river
of people". Iova “dreamy people", Kansas -
"the people of the Southern wind", Kentucky-"
(ken-tan-teh) "the earth of the tomorrow",
Massachusetts -"a small place on a big hill",
Michigan, (michi gama) "big water".
Name of rivers: Mississippi-maesi sipu "fish
river", Nebraska "large river", Oklahoma "red
people". Indian words sachem, sagamore are
used to denote Indian chief.
32
 A great number of Americanisms have been
barrowed from the languages of immigrants
from Europe. German words: pretzel-a baked
and salted biscuit, Jarge-beer-beer kept for
some months before use, wienie - a kind of
seasonal sousage, humburger.
Moose, an Indian word for "elk" become a
part of the phraseological unit "fit as a bull
moose" ("healthy as a bull"). This phrase
became so popular that it became
metaphorically used to denote the Progressive
Party in 1912 elections: Bull Moose Party. The
supporters of this party were consequently
called Bull Moosers.
A number of Americanisms are assosiated
with the barrowings from the Indian language.
Tomahawk (axe), borrowd into American
Englich from an Indian language has entered
the following expressions: to bury the
tomahawk "to ment", to dig up (to raise) the
tomahawk "to begin military operation”.
Pemmican ("dried meat mixed with fat"),
barrowed from Indians, has also attained the
meaning of "laconic statement" (word).
Sachem (tribal leader of Indians) adopted by
Americans from an Indian language has
33
attained a derivative meaning used in, colloquial
speech as "political boss".
Toboggan ("ski"), borrowed from a local
language: - “a vehicle led by dogs”. Its
derivative through conversion now is also used
as a verb (to toboggan), denoting "to skate" and
has also become a part of a phaseological unit:
prices tobogganed "prices have sharply
decreased.
There are about two thousands words and
expressions that are native to Canada,or which
have a meaning peculiar to Canada.
Many words and phrases used in the USA
have retained Elizabethan English meanings
and pronounciations that have long disappeared
in the Mother Country. Of course,there are
many American phrases which are used there
but haven't been adopted outside the country;
for example, blue plate special, lead-pipe cinch
and presto chango are widely understood in the
US, but would procure puzzled looks in other
English-speaking countries.
Many English phrases that were coined in
the USA now are also used around the world:
A shot in the arm "stimulus".
This expression derives from the
34
invigorating effect of injecting drugs. A shot is
of course US slang for an injection, either of a
narcotic or medicinal drug. That term has been
in use since around the beginning of the 20th
century.
As happy as clam “very happy and contend”.
Why would clams be happy? It has been
suggested that open clams give the appearance
of smiling. The derivation is more likely to
come from the fuller version of the phrase, now
rarely heard-'as happy y as a clam at high
water". Hide tide is when clams are free from
the attentions of predators; surely the happiest
of times in the bivalve mollusc world. The
phrase originated in the north-eastern states of
the USA in the early 19th century.
Back to the drawing board. "Start again on a
new design or plan after the failure of an earlier
attempt".
This term has been used since 19th century as
a jocular acceptance that a design has failed and
that a new one is needed. lt gained common
currency quite quickly and began appearing in
US newspapers by 1947, as here in the Walla
Walla Union-Bulletin, Washington,December
1947:
35
 Back-seat driver. "Someone who criticizes
from the sidelines"
This comes from the annoying habit of some
people of giving unwanted advice to vehicle
drivers. lt emerged in the USA in early 20th
century, as motoring was becoming
widespread.
Bats in the belfry. "Crazy eccentric".
Bats are, of course, the erratically flying
mammals and “belfries” are bell towers
sometimes found at the top of churches. “Bats
in the belfry” refers to someone who acts as
though he has bats careering around his
topmost part, i.e.his head.
An arm and a leg. “A large, possibly
exorbitant, amount of money”.
It cost and arm and a leg is one of those
phrases that rank high in the “I know where that
comes from” stories told at the local pub. In this
case the tale is that portrait painters used to
charge more for larger paintings and that a
head and shoulders painting was the cheapest
option, followed in price by one which
included arms and finally the top of the range
“leg and all” portrait. As so often with popular
etymologies,there's no truth in that
36
story.Painters certainly did charge more for
large pictures, but there's no evidence to
suggest they did so by limb count. In any case
the phrase is much more recent than the
painting origin would suggest.
The customer is always right. "The trading
policy that states a company's keenness to be
seen to put the customers first".
Several retail concern used this as a slogan
from the early 20th century onward. In the USA
it is particularly associated with Marshall
Field's department store, Chicago (established
in the late 19th century).
The store is an icon of the sity, although it is
set to lose its name in 2006 when, following a
takeover, it becomes renamed as Macy's.In the
UK, Harry Gordon Selfridge (1857-1947)the
founder of London's Selfridges store (opened in
1909) is credited with championing its use.
The Wisconsin born Selfridge worked for
Field from 1879 to 1901. Both men were
dynamic and creative businessmen and it's
highly likely that one of them coined the
plirase, although we don't know which.
Of course, these entrepreneurs didn't intend
to be taken literally. What they were attempting
37
to do was to make the customer feel special by
inculcating into their staff the disposition to
behave as if the customer was right, even when
they weren't.
Zero tolerance. "A from of policing that
allows no crime or anti-social behaviour to be
overlooked".
As the name of a form of policing this term
came into use in the USA in the 197 (Ts.This
method typically involved allocating additional
law-enforcement resources to areas where
some form of crime, e.g. mugging or
prostitution,was endemic and then applying the
strict and uncompromising letter of the law.
Wild and Wooly. "Lawless and Uncultured".
This expressions is of American origin and
came into being to describe the "wild"west of
the country sometime after the Californian
Gold Rush era of the 1850s.
What’s not to like? "A rhetorical
questions,suggesting that what is being spoken
of is without fault"
What's not to like? Well, many people don't
like this cliched phrase, which has become as
overused as “wake up and smell the coffee”,
think outside the box etc.
38
 It sounds like, and is, of American origin and
has been in use there since at least the 1960s,
possibly earlier and is in the mould of a Jewish
rhetorical phrase, like “What am I, chopped
liver?” or Is the Pope Catholic?”
Wear the trousers. "Be in charge"
To be “wearing the trousers” is to be the
dominant member of a household.
In the days that this phrase was coined that
person was normally expected to be the
husband and father. The only reason to employ
the phrase at all was to relate it to a woman,
with the implication that the normal order had
been overturned and that a woman was
dominant over her husband.
Spring forward, fall back. "Mnemonic
relating to Daylight Saving Time, indicating
that clocks are moved forward an hour in spring
and back an hour in autumn".
Autumn is the time of year for English
wrinklies like me to bemoan the creeping
Americanization of our culture,as we see
Bonfire Night being steadily superseded by
Halloween.
Spill the beans. “To divulge a secret,
especially to do so inadvertenly or
39
maliciously".
The derivation of this expression is
sometimes said to be a voting system used in
ancient Greece. The story goes that white beans
indicated positive votes and black beans
negative. Votes had to be unanimous, so if the
collector 'spilled the beans' before the vote was
complete and a black bean was seen, the vote
was halted. That's plausible, but doesn't account
for the fact that the phrase is first found in the
early 20th century. It's probably best if we
concentrate our search there and ignore ancient
Greece.
Sold down the river. "Betrayed or cheated"
This phrase originated in the Mississippi
region of the USA during slave trading days.
Slaves who caused trouble were sold from the
northern slave states into the much harsher
conditions on plantations in the lower
Mississippi.
Pull the wool over your eyes. The natural
assumption is that this phrase derives from the
wearing of woollen wigs, which were
fashionable for both men and women in the
16th and 17th centuries. The phrase itself is of
19th century American origin.
40
 The 'wig' derivation is probably correct but
there must be an element of doubt about it as
the wearing of wigs had largely died out in the
USA by the early 19th century. The tradition
has continued in Europe where the judiciary of
several countries wear wigs in court.
A no-brainer. Something that requires little
mental effort or intelligence to perform or
understand. The term is often applied to
decisions which are straightforward or
sometimes to people who appear to lack
intelligence.
“No-brainer” is American in origin and was
first used there in the 1950 s.
No dice. "A refusal to accept a proposition -
equivalent to 'nothing doing'".
This is a US phrase and originated there in
the early 20th century. Gambling with dice was
illegal in many states and so gamblers went to
some pains to hide the dice when challenged by
the police. Courts would sometimes throw out
cases if the dice weren't offered in evidence.
There are several court records where gamblers
were alleged to have swallowed dice to avoid
arrest.
My bad. “My mistake. I'm to blame”.
41
 This slang term originated in about 1970. At
that time, i.e. pre the widespread use of the
Internet, slang terms often circulated at street
level for many years before being adopted by
anyone who felt inclined to write them down.
That's clearly not the case any longer of course
and any word or phrase that is widely known is
dateable quite precisely via website logs.
Make a bee-line for. "Go directly towards".
The phrase derives from the behaviour of
bees. When a forager bee finds a source of
nectar it returns to the hive and communicates
its location to the other bees, using a display
called the Waggle Dance. The other bees are
then able to fly directly to the source of the
nectar, i.e. “make a bee-line” for it. This dance
is a surprisingly sophisticated means of
communication for a creature with such a small
brain. The forager bee performs a short
wiggling run - hence the name, with the angle
denoting the direction of the nectar-laden
flowers and the length of time denoting the
distance.
Lame duck. "A person or thing that isn't
properly able to function, especially one that
was previously proficient."
42
 The description of 'lame duck' is often
applied to politicians who are known to be in
their final term of office, when colleagues and
electors look toward a successor. It is also
sometimes used to describe office-holders who
have lost an election but have not yet left
office.

Australian realities

Australian English incorporates many terms

that Australians consider to be unique to their
country. One of the best-known of these is
outback which means a remote, sparsely-
populated area. Many such words, phrases or
usages originated with British and Irish
convicts transported to Australia in 1788-1868.
And many words which are still used
frequently by rural Australians are also used in
all or part of England, with variations in
meaning. For example:
-a creek in Australia (as in North America),
is any "stream or small river", whereas in
England it is a small watercourse flowing into
the sea.
-paddock is the Australian word for "field",
43
while in England it is a small enclosure for
livestock.
Australian English and several British
English dialects (e.g. Cockney, Scouse,
Geordie) use the word mate to mean a close
friend of the same gender, rather than the
conventional meaning of a spouse, although
this usage has also become common in some
other varieties of English. Origins of other
terms are not as clear, or are disputed. Dinkum
or fair dinkum means true, the truth, speaking
the truth, and related meanings, depending on
context and inflection. It is often claimed that
dinkum was derived from the Cantonese (or
Hoklden) ding kam, meaning top gold, during
the Australian goldrushes of the 1850s. This,
however, is chronologically improbable since
dinkum is first recorded in the 1890s. Scholars
give greater credence to the notion that it
originated with a now-extinct dialect word
from the East Midlands in England, where
dinkum (or dincum) meant "hard work or fair
work, which was also the original meaning in
Australian English. The derivation dinky-di
means a true or devoted Australian. The words
dinkum or dinky-di and phrases like true blue
44
are widely purported to be typical Australian
sayings, however these sayings are more
commonly used in jest or parody rather than as
an authentic way of speaking.
Similarly, gday, a stereotypical Australian
greeting,is no longer synonymous with good
day in other varieties of English (it can be used
at night time) and is never used as an
expression for farewell, as good, day is in other
countries.
Sheila, Australian slang for woman, is
derived from the Irish girls name Sile.
Where foodstuffs are concerned, Australian
English tends to be more closely related to the
British vocabulary, for example the term biscuit
is the traditional and common term rather than
the American term cookie and cracker. As had
been the case with many terms, cookie is
recognised and understood by Australians, and
occa sionally used, especially among younger
generations. In Australia the term chips is used
for what Americans call French Fries, as. with
British English. In Australia chips is also used
for what are called crisps in the JK, this second
usage also being the American English term for
crisps. The distinction is sometimes made
45
through the adjective hot. The term French
Fries is understood and sometimes used by
Australians. US restaurants such as McDonalds
continue to use the term French fries in
Australia. A few cases such as zucchini, snow
pea and eggplant, Australian English uses the
same terms as American English, whereas the
British use the equivalent French terms
courgette, mangetout and aubergine. This is
possibly due to a fashion that emerged in mid-
19th century Bruain of adopting French nouns
for foodstuffs and hence the usage changed in
Britain while the original terms were preserved
in the colonies, are also occasions when
Australians use words or terms which are not
common in the other forms of English. For
example, Australia uses the botanical name
capsicum for what the Americans would call
(red or green) bell peppers and the British (red
or green) peppers. Perhaps this is in order to
contrast table pepper (berries of genus Piper)
from so-called hot hot peppers. Since the mid-
1980s other varieties of coffee have also
become popular, although these have generally
been known by names used in North America
and/or Europe. In British English, the
46
colourless, slightly lemon-flavoured,
carbonated drink known in North America and
elsewhere under brand names such as Sprite
and 7 Up is called lemonade, while the more
strongly flavoured drink known as lemonade in
North America that is typically made of lemon
juice and sugar is sometimes referred to as
lemon squash,or sometimes traditional
lemonade or club lemon, particularly in
carbonated form. Carbonated drink commonly
called sarsaparilla in Australia is a type of root
beer, named after the sarsaparilla root from
which root beer is made. However, the taste is
quite different, to the point that they may be
considered two completely different products.
This may be due to a difference in the
production process.
Australians also often refer to McDonald's
restaurants as Maccas, to the point that the
corporation itself refers to itself verbally as s; Ji
in advertising(but not in writing) unbranded
Australian wine is called "cleanskin" wine,
after the term for unbranded cattle. Cheap cask
wine is often referir i to as goon (diminutive
slang for flagon), and the plastic cask is
referred to as a goon sack, goon bag or goony.
47
Portable cooler, usually made of metal, plastic
and/or polystyrene foam, is called an esky. This
is a genericised trademark from the trade name
Esky.
Australian flora has given rise to many
words with various meanings. Among them
eucalyptus has almost become the symbol of
Australian nature. The word gum in Australian
English means eucalyptus. This word was
widely used in formation of phraseological units
and slangs:
-mad as a gumtree (very crasy), As possum
up a gumtree (very happy), to fix the old gum
tree (to have a settled way of life), to have
gumleaves growing out of ears(to be very
simpleminded and foolish).
It is associated with the condition of living in
the middst of gum forest without any
information of the world beyond the forest.
-to have seen one's last gumtree (to be very
close to danger), to ride up a gumtree (to fall
from the horse).
The founa has also given rise to the
formation of phrases and slangs. In this sense
the famous Australian kangaroo has a
particular place in phrase formation:
48
 -to have kangaroos in one's top paddock (a
man the members of whose family live in
different places),
-to be happy as a boxing kangaroo in
fogtime (to be happy)
-to kangaroo a car (to drive a car with many
stops)
-kangaroo dog (Australian hound for
hunting kangaroos)
-kangaroo court (comedy court )sarcastic
expression used to denote the anormal
functioning of courts.

I. Answer the following questions

1. Why is the language considered to be

inseparable from culture?
2. Why is the language told to be the mirrow
of culture?
3. Why are the language realities told not to
have lexical equivalents in other languages?
4. Why do an Englishman and a Chinese
man refer to different types of fast food, when
one says lunh?
5. Why is the language told to be not
separable from the social life of the people,
49
their psychology, mythology, traditions,
superstitions, literature and history?
6. Why is the expression Gretna Green
marriage considered to be an English reality?
7. From which real fact does the expression
«It’s raining cats and dogs» take its origin?
8. Why is the decreasing of prices associated
with the verb «toboggan» in American
English?

II. Associate the following phraseological

units
with their historical or natural
baskground

Don’t throw the baby out with the bath

water; Burning a candle at both ends; Mind
your P’s and Q’s; Goodnight sleep tight; to
play opossum; to bury the tomahawk; To dig
up the tomahawk; As happy as clam; The
customer is always right; To wear the trousers;
Mad as a gumtree; As possum up a gumtree;
To have seen one’s last gumtree; To have
kangaroos in one’s top paddock; to cangaroo a
car.

50
 III. Give explanation to the following
linguistic
realities used in different variants of the
English language

Lucky dog; health stamp, spend-a-holic;

ploughman’s lunch; honeymoon; motel; smog;
backwoods; pow-wow; squaw; mugwump;
fire-water; pretzel; pemmican; tomahawk;
outback; dinkum; sheila; cracker; paddock.

IV. Match the given realities to the

corresponding definition

1. Gretna Green a) when one has fallen

marrige in love he or she does
not guess the
shortages in the
character of his/her
lover.
2. Love is blind b) to bel ost, to lose
one’s way.
3. Pow-wow The agreement
51
 achieved between two
warrying sides,
presently used to
denote any type of
aqreement used in
colloquial speech.
4. To smoke a pipe of First denoting priest or
peace a medicine man, later
was used to denote a
ceremony in which
magic is practised (1)
an Indian Council (2)
and finally conference
or get-together of any
kind (3).
5. To be bushed An easy way of
marriage not requiring
complicated
formalities which
attracted a great
number of those who
wanted to marry
quickly.
6. To fix the old gum-
tree
7. to have kangaroos To have a setted way
52
in one’s top paddock of life
8. To İrish up Being simple-minded
and foolish associated
with the condition of
living in the middst of
gum forest without
any information of the
world beyond the
forest
9.To fix the old gum- To be very close to
tree danger
10. To have Going mad, becoming
gumleaves growing very angry
out of ears
11. To have seen one’s The man the members
last gum-tree of whose family live
in different places.
12. To kangaroo a car To cause sudden
unexpected harm to
the person who made
it; to have the opposite
result to what was
intended
13. To boomerang To drive a car with
many stops

53
14. Ghost car To decrease (about the
price)
15. To toboggan Unmarked police car

54
 2. Foreign Cultures as a source of
National
Lexicon.
The Celts

While Anglo-Saxon culture and language

spread swiftly across east and central Britain
during the 6th and 7th centuries, corners of the
isle retained the languages of the previous
dominant culture. The Celtic peoples are
believed to have begun arriving around 600
B.C. However, the Celtic peoples who invaded
Britain are believed to have integrated with the
people who previously inhabited the island,
absorbing elements of the language spoken by
this group, much in the way that the Normans
were later to adopt many English words in
order to adapt to their new homeland. The Celts
had already spread their influence across most
of central Europe and interacted with the
Germanic tribes. Their languages were not
retained in Europe for the most part, but their
influence can be seen through subtle changes,
in France for example, the use of Latin was
modified through the local influences of Celtic
55
languages. Dialects spoken in northern Spain
are heavily influenced by Celtic to this day.
There is also a noticeable correspondence
between northern Italian place names and
similar names in Cornwall, starting with tre (a
Celtic word for a farm or settlement). Celtic
words in Old English come from three
identifiable sources - from the continent
(usually words associated with conflict and
battle - the Celts were often used as 'armies for
hire'), loans taken over after settlement (usually
place names), and words from Ireland
frequently associated with the Christianisation
of Britain. The Celtic language group has been
categorised as as part of the Indo-European
group of languages, yet some studies have
shown that there are features of Celtic language
syntax that is not Indo-European, in fact shares
much in common with the
Hamito-Semitic group of languages. This
would indicate a fusion of native and newly
imposed language on people who used their
own grammar patterns to make sense of an
unfamiliar language, and reflects the extent to
which the Celts spread themselves across the
continent. Not a great deal is known about
56
those who inhabited the British Isles before the
Celts, but it is interesting to think that their
languages, lost forever, may survive in some
way through the preservation of other
languages.
However, the Anglo-Saxons terrorised rather
than integrated with the Celts, and so their
languages became isolated in corners of the
isle, until the efficiency of the Norman
conquest created a linguistic hierarchy with
Celtic languages entrenched firmly at the
bottom. Celtic loan words in the English
language, a language renowned for its
borrowing of words from many other
languages. Celtic languages were viewed as
inferior, and words that have survived are
usually words with geographical significance,
and place names. Adopted words include
bucket, car, crockery, noggin, gob, slogan and
flannel, truant and gaol (although these words
entered general English usage at a later date -
certainly post-Norman conquest). The survival
of the Celtic languages has been a matter of
pride, and they have survived mainly where
numbers were large enough to enable it's
survival through everyday usage, as well as
57
having their importance emphasized through
the establishment of a body of literary work.
Unfortunately, the various branches became
geographically isolated, preventing any
opportunity at standardization as an alternative
to the centralized English social and political
structure.
For the most part, Celtic influence on the
English language is mostly apparent through
place names. For generations, the language of
the Celts was referred to as 'British' – the
language of the Britons, the native inhabitants
of the land. Some names that survive are the
names of rivers such as the Thames and the
Yare, and important Roman towns such as
London, York and Lincoln. A number of names
are compounds of Celtic and Anglo-Saxon
words. Two Celtic words for "hill" bre and pen
appear in a number of names. Brill in
Buckinghamshire is a combination of bre and
OE hyll Breedon on the Hill in Leicestershire is
a combination of bre and dun, both Celtic
words, and Brewood in Staffordshire is
combined with OE wudu. Pensax in
Herefordshire means "hill of the Anglo-
Saxons", giving an indication of the proximity
58
but isolation in which Celtic communities
would have existed until they were gradually
pushed to the corners of Britain by the Anglo-
Saxons. The use of "Combe" or "Coombe" as
part of many place names comes from the
Celtic word kumb, which meant "valley", and
was adopted into OE. The word tor used
mainly in the south-west of Britain, means
"rock", and is used in conjunction with the
granite peaks on Dartmoor and Bodmin moor -
Hay Tor, Hound Tor etc, and was incorporated
into the name of the coastal town 'Torquay'.
Bodmin itself is a compound of the Cornish
words bod "dwelling" (which may have come
into English as "abode") and monegh 'monks'.
The meaning of the name Bodmin is an
interesting one, as it makes a connection with
the fact that Celtic loanwords generally come
from place names where they have survived for
centuries, being adopted by each invading
group as they arrived, but that also a number of
loanwords have connections with religious
terms. There is considerable evidence to
suggest that a number of words were brought
over from Ireland by the Christian
missionaries, and that their survival was due to
59
the strength of British Christianity that for a
while exceeded that of the Roman church. The
word "cross" (Gaelic crois), was used
alongside OE rood for several centuries before
it eventually became part of the English
lexicon. Another loan word is dry "magician,
sorcerer", which comes from Olr. drui (druid).
Many of these words were loans from Latin but
came to Britain by way of the missionaries. Old
İrish anchor 'anchorite', comes
originally from Latin as does stoer 'history'.
While the contribution of Celtic languages to
the English language seems disproportionate to
the importance and longevity of Celtic culture
within British society over time, it is important
to remember that the place names that have
been created are still a useful reminder of the
ways in which past society viewed their
surroundings, and the names they chose feature
the characteristics of the land as it was
observed by those who lived during that time.
At the same time, the lack of apparent word
sharing is indicative of how effective a social
and political tool language can be by creating a
class system through language usage. England
was able to effectively unite as a world
60
influence by enforcing a standard language
throughout the country. However, the very
social
stigma that suppressed the use of Celtic
language is the same stigma that prevents us
learning the full extent of the influence those
languages have had on English. The nature of
the Anglo-Saxon invasions indicates that
isolated pockets of Celtic peoples would have
been scattered all over the country (not all of
them ran to the hills), and existed side by side
in separate communities, eventually inter-
marrying and becoming absorbed into Anglo
Saxon culture. The apparent lack of Celtic
words in OE may be because we do not yet
understand how the languages of these people
merged together and developed until these
groups came to share a common language.
Some more examples of Celtic originated
words in English:
slogan (from siuagh-ghairm meaning "a
battle-cry used by Gaelic clans"). Meaning of a
word or phrase used by a specific group is
metaphorical and first attested from 1704.
whiskey (from uisce beatha meaning "water
of life").
61
 hooligan (from the Irish family name O
hUallachain, anglicised as O'Houlihan) one
who takes part in rowdy behaviour and
vandalism.
galore (from go leor meaning "plenty") a
lot.
clan from the compound form clann children
or family. Old Irish cland
Trousers from triubhas via "trews".
vug, vugg, vugh from Cornish vooga, "cave",
penguin possibly from pen gwyn, "white
head". 'The fact that the penguin has a black
head is no serious objection," It may also be
derived from the Breton language, which is
closely related. Some dictionaries suggest a
derivation from Welsh pen "head" and gwyn
"white", including the Oxford English
Dictionary, the American Heritage Dictionary
the Century Dictionary and Merriam-Webster
on the basis that the name was originally
applied to the great auk which had white spots
in front of its eyes (although its head was
black).
beak from Old French bec, from Latin
beccus, from Gaulish becco, corgi from cor
"dwarf" + gi (soft mutation of ci), "dog".
62
 Bog from related to boglach swamp, from
Old Irish bocc.
Most Celtic borrowings are peculiar for
Celtic culture, e.g. druid, bard, kilt, menhir,
whiskey. But other lexical items have long lost
their Celtic 'flavour' and have come to be used
universally, e.g. gull, slogan, flannel, merry,
bother, Tory. The Celtic languages contributed
not learned or literary words but rather
vocabulary for day-to-day purpose. Several
different phases of loanwords can be identified,
starting with the contact between Germanic and
Celtic languages on the continent and
continuing up to the present day. During the
Bronze and Iron Ages there was linguistic
contact between continental Celtic and
Germanic peoples that resulted in at least a
small degree of lexical borrowing. It was at this
stage that the term isarn 'iron', entered the
Germanic languages as a loan from Celtic.
Another continental loan is the Germanic
riki- (cf. Ger. Reich, Gaulish rix), which only
survives today as an element in bishopric. This
Germanic element was also borrowed into
French and thence to English thus giving rich.
Some words however do not reflect lexical
63
loans or borrowings but instead reveal the
common Indo-European ancestry of both the
Germanic and Celtic languages. These include
beaver (cf. G. Biber, Lat fiber, Celt. bebros or
bibros) and oath (cf. Olr. oeth, Ger. Eid). The
next phase shows a number of British words
taken over into Old English, e.g. syrce 'coat of
mail', mil in milpat 'army road', perhaps prass
'pomp,array', wassenas 'retainers', trem 'pace',
trum 'strong', truma 'host', wered 'sweet drink',
lorh 'pole, distaff, cladur 'clapper', hreol 'reel',
deor 'brave', wann 'dark, pallid', perhaps stor
'incense'. While the number of British loans in
the semantic field of military and warfare is
curiously strong, perhaps suggesting British
superior military tactics, none of these words
survive in Present
It is only ass, bin, crag, coombe and hog that
were taken over from British at this stage and
are still used today. From Irish were to come:
dry 'magician' (cf. Irish drui 'druid, magician'),
sacerd 'priest', cursung 'curse', deorc 'bloody',
perhaps gap 'servant', trud 'buffoon', cumeman
'serf (from Irish coloman 'farmer'). In addition,
the following words came from Irish via Norse:
gafeluc 'javelin', the first part of Beltancu
64
'Beltaine cow, May Day cow', the name
Cwiran (from Irish cuaran 'little hunchback') as
well as clucge 'bell', hence clock. Some words
that are originally Latin found their way into
Old English through the transmission of Irish:
fann 'fan', Old English ancor 'anchorite' (from
Old Irish anchara which is based on Lat.
anachoreta) and probably the most important:
OE cros 'cross' (from OIr. cross, based on Lat.
crux) and from Latin over British came funta
'fount', (Lat. fontand).
In her 1935 work A History of Foreign
Words in English, Serjeantson identifies quite a
number of loans from Irish:
kern Tory florin
'coarse grass'
lough galore keen
'lament'
tanist rapparee
blarney
shamrock pollan,
colleen
rath banshee
carrageen
brogue 'shoe' shillelagh
crannog
65
 leprechaun spalpeen
loch
ogham planxty
mull

Romans

Germanic dialects at an early date — some

in one dialect only, others in several — testify
to the extensive intercourse between the two
peoples. The number of Germans living within
the empire by the fourth century is estimated at
several million. They are found in all ranks and
classes of society, from slaves in the fields to
commanders of important divisions of the
Roman army. While they were scattered all
over the empire, they were naturally most
numerous along the northern frontier. This
stretched along the Rhine and the Danube and
bordered on German territory. Close to the
border was Treves, in the third and fourth
centuries the most flourishing city in Gaul,
already boasting Christian churches, a focus of
eight military roads, where all the luxury and
splendor of Roman civilization were united
66
almost under the gaze of the Teutons on the
Moselle and the Rhine. Traders, German as
well as Roman, came and went, while German
youth returning from within the empire must
have carried back glowing accounts of Roman
cities and Roman life. Such intercourse
between the two peoples was certain to carry
words from one language to the other.
Intercommunication between the different
Germanic tribes was frequent and made
possible the transference of Latin words from
one tribe to another. In any case some fifty
words from the Latin can be credited with a
considerable degree of probability to the
ancestors of the English in their continental
homes.
The adopted words naturally indicate the
new conceptions which the Teutons acquired
from this contact with a higher civilization.
Next to agriculture the chief occupation of the
Germans in the empire was war, and this
experience is reflected in words like camp
(battle), segn (banner), pil (pointed stick,
javelin), weall (wall), pytt (pit), straet (road,
street), mil (mile), and mil, tester (courtesan).
More numerous are the words connected with
67
trade. The Teutons traded amber, furs, slaves,
and probably certain raw materials for the
products of Roman handicrafts, articles of
utility, luxury, and adornment. The words ceap
(bargain; Eng., cheap, chapman) and mangian
(to trade) with its derivatives mangere
(monger), mangung (trade, commerce), and
mangung-hus (shop) are fundamental, while
pund (pound), mydd (bushel), seam (burden,
loan), and mynet (coin) are terms likely to be
employed. From the last word Old English
formed the words mynetian (to mint or coin)
and mynetere (money-changer). One of the
most important branches of Roman commerce
with the Teutons was the wine trade: hence
such words in English as win (wine), must
(new wine), eced (vinegar), and fliasce (flask,
bottle). To this period are probably to be
attributed the words cylle (L. culleus, leather
bottle), cyrfette (L. curcurbita, gourd), and
sester(jar, pitcher). A number of the new words
relate to domestic life and designate household
articles, clothing, etc.: cytel (kettle; L. atillus,
catlnus), mese (table), scamol (L. scamellum,
bench, stool; cf. modern shambles), teped
(carpet, curtain; L. tapetum), pyle (L. pulvinus,
68
pillow), pilece (L. pellicia, robe of kin), and
sigel (brooch, necklace; L. sigillum). Certain
other words of a similar kind probably belong
here although the evidence for their adoption
thus early is not in every case conclusive:
cycene (kitchen; L. coquina), disc (dish; L.
discuss), cucler (spoon; L. coclearium),
mortere (L mortarium, a mortar, a vessel of
hard material), line (rope, line; L. Imea),and
gimm (L. gemma, gem).
The Teutons adopted Roman words for
certain foods, such as ciese (L. caseus, cheese),
spelt (wheat), pipor (pepper), senep (mustard;
L. sinapi), popig (poppy), while to this period
are probably to be assigned butere, ynne(leac)
(L.unio, onion), plume (plum), pise (L. pisum,
pea), and minte (L.mentha, mint). Roman
contributions to the building arts are evidenced
by such words as cealc (chalk), copor (copper),
pic (pitch), and tigele (tile), hile miscellaneous
words such as mul (mule), draca (dragon),
pawa (peacock), the adjectives sicor (L.
securus, safe) and calu (L. calvus, bald), segne
(seine), pipe (pipe, musical instrument), cirice
(church), biscop (bishop), casere(emperor), and
Saeternesdaeg Saturday) may be mentioned.
69
 In general, if we are surprised at the number
of words acquired from the Romans at so early
a date by the Germanic tribes that came to
England, we can see nevertheless that the
words were such as they would be likely to
borrow and such as reflect in a very reasonable
way the relations that existed between the two
peoples.
The circumstances responsible for the slight
influence which Celtic exerted on Old English
limited in like manner the Latin influence that
sprang from the period of Roman occupation.
From the extent to which Britain was
Romanized, and the employment of Latin by
certain elements in the population, one would
expect a considerable number of Latin words
from this period to have remained in use and to
appear in the English language today. It is
probable that the use of Latin as a spoken
language did not long survive still the end of
Roman rule in the island and that such vestiges
as remained for a time were lost in the
disorders that accompanied the Germanic
invasions. There was thus no opportunity for
direct contact between Latin and Old English in
England, and such Latin words as could have
70
found their way into English would have had to
come in through Celtic transmission. The Celts,
indeed, had adopted a considerable number of
Latin words — over six hundred have been
identified — but the relations between the Celts
and the English were such, as we have already
seen, that these words were not passed on.This
word, which represents the Latin castra
(camp), is a common designation in Old
English for a town or enclosed community. It
forms a familiar element in English lace-
names such as Chester, Colchester,
Dorchester, Manchester, Winchester,
Lancaster, Doncaster, Gloucester, Worcester,
and many others. Some of these refer to sites of
Roman camps, but it must not be thought that a
Roman settlement underlies all the towns
whose names contain this common element.
The English attached it freely to the
designation of any enclosed place intended for
habitation, and many of the places so
designated were known by quite different
names in Roman times. A few other words are
thought for one reason or another to belong to
this period: port (harbor, gate, town) from L.
portus and porta; torr (tower, rock) possibly
71
from L. turns,possibly from Celtic; wic
(village) from L. vicus. All of these words are
found also as elements in place-names. It is
possible that some of the Latin words which
the Teutons had acquired on the continent, such
as street (L. strata via), wall, wine, etc., were
reinforced by the presence of the same words
in Celtic. At best, however, the Latin influence
of the First Period remains much the slightest
of all the influences which Old English owed to
contact with Roman civilization.

Scandinavians

As a result of the contacts with the Vikings,

the Old English language underwent influence
of Scandinavian towards the end of the Old
English period. Originally, on the continent the
Anglo-Saxons and the Scandinavians were
intimately related in a common racial and
linguistic bond. This explains why the first
English epic Beowulf, had for its setting one of
the Scandinavian countries; even the main
characters in the poem are Scandinavian. But
when the Vikings began to attack and plunder
England, the relationship between the
72
Germanic races worsened. Ultimately, many
Scandinavians settled down in different parts of
England, and as a result of this co-existence,
the language of the Anglo-Saxons was
considerably influenced by the language of the
invaders. Since the two peoples lived very
intimately, it is very difficult to identify the
Scandinavian words in English. Some words,
however, can be identified as of Scandinavian
origin. The reason is that phonologically their
form is different from what could be expected
in a native English word. Thus the word awe is
certainly of Scandinavian origin; the Old
English form is ege. Another word where Old
English had a palatal g and Scandinavian a
velar g was the word for 'egg', which was Old
English aeg and Scandinavian egg. Obviously,
therefore, the modern word egg comes from
Scandinavian. Similarly Old English
sometimes had palatal c where Scandinavian
retained the velar k. That is why church is
English and kirk is Scandinavian. Again
Germanic sk did not become palatalized in
Scandinavian as it did in Old English. Thus
shirt is English and skirt Scandinavian. Among
the vowels, the main difference is that proto-
73
Germanic ai becomes ei in Scandinavian, but a
in Old English as can be seen in the pair nei-na,
the first giving modern English nay and the
second no. Often, a word of Scandinavian
origin can be identified by the fact that it does
not occur in Old English, but does occur in
Scandinavian. An example is the verb, "to
take", which is Scandinavian taka. This is not
found in Old English, which uses the verb
niman. Many of the Scandinavian words have
since died out from the English language, but
quite a number remains. We find the legal and
administrative terms, such as the words —
thrall, law, by-law, crave and riding. The
largest single group of these words is such as
would be associated with a sea-roving people,
words like barda (beaked ship), ceanerr (small
warship), lith (fleet), dreng (warrior), orrest
(battle) and ran (robbery). Among the most
notable evidences of Scandinavian settlement
in England is the large number of places that
bear Scandinavian names. We find more than
six hundred of places like Whitby, Derby,
Rugby (-by, a Danish word meaning 'farm' or
'town'), three hundred names like Althorp and
Linthorp (Scan. 'thorp meaning 'village'),
74
almost equal number of names like Braithwate,
(Scan, thwate, meaning "an isolated piece of
land", about a hundred places like Brimtoft,
Nortoft (Scan, -toft a piece of ground). A
similar high percentage of Scandinavian
personal names is found in English. Names
ending in -son, like Stevenson or Johnson,
conform to a characteristic Scandinavian
custom. The English and the Scandinavian
were accustomed to much the same kind of
rural life, and the fusion of the two peoples was
a very close one. Many of the words taken over
in consequence were homely and everyday
ones. Thus the word sister is taken from
Scandinavian. So are the names of parts of the
body — leg and neck. Other common names
include window, sky, knife, skin, dirt, skill, bag,
cake and fellow. Everyday adjectives include
wrong, low, loose, odd, flat and ugly. Among
the everyday verbs are get, give, call, want,
take, drag, smile, thrive, die etc. the
conjunction though is also from Scandinavian.
So are more remarkably the pronouns they,
them and their. As Jesperson pointed out, such
words are rarely borrowed by one language
from another. All this only go to show that the
75
distinguished Scandinavian philologist is right
when he says: "An Englishman cannot thrive or
be ill or die without Scandinavian words; they
are to the language what bread and eggs are to
the daily fare."
When the Vikings arrived in the British Isles
the dominant language was the Old English of
the Anglo-Saxons, while the Vikings
themselves spoke Old Norse. Scholars claim
that the two languages, both of the Germanic
branch, were probably still rather similar, thus
making it possible for both sides to understand
each other, although with a little effort. The
two languages were cognates, and similar in
their basic structures. Additionally, a certain
degree of bilingualism may have developed
over time, but there is however much
disagreement over this issue. It is not clear if
the Danes, the English, or both, became
bilingual.
By 1100 the English in the north and east
had been modified to what one calls Anglo-
Scandinavian. This was at the end of the
Viking Age, but that did not mean that Old
Norse stopped being used in Britain; it was
spoken for a long time thereafter as well.
76
Travelling by sea was still important, and
contacts were kept with the Isle of Man, Irish
ports and the Northern Isles, which helped to
keep the language alive. These places all
contained a large and influential Norse-
speaking population until the late twelfth
century, and sometimes longer. The Orkney
and Shetland Islands also had an important role
in keeping the language alive. The Orkneys are
particularly interesting, since the Norse
language was spoken there throughout the
Middle Ages, and remained the common
language until the 1500s when the
Anglicisation began and the population
probably became bilingual. The complete
Scandinavisation of Orkney and Shetland was
quite unique; nowhere else did the same thing
occur.
Naturally, the massive migration and
settlement that the Scandinavians undertook led
to extensive use of the Norse tongue in the area
of the Danelaw, and we can see evidence of it
even today through its influences on the
English language. Scandinavian vocabulary
penetrated nearly every area of the language
but most words of Scandinavian origin in
77
English are concrete everyday words. A few
examples follow here:
The nouns bank, birth, booth, egg, husband,
law, leg, root, score, sister, skin, trust, wing
and window
The adjectives awkward, flat, happv, ill,
loose, low, odd, sly, ugly, weak, and wrong.
The verbs to cast, clip, crawl, cut, die,
drown, gasp, give, lift, nag, scare, sprint, take,
and want. And of course the present plural of'to
be', are.
The pronouns both, same, they, them and
their. A few examples of later borrowings from
the Scandinavian languages are fjord, saga, ski.
slalom, smorgasbord and viking.
The fact that even the pronouns 'they', 'them'
and 'their' were accepted into the language
shows what massive effects the Viking
settlement had. Of course, since the
development of the Old English pronouns had
led to them being very similar and a cause of
ambiguity and misunderstandings, it was easy
to accept the Norse variant. Nevertheless, it is
very unusual that grammatical items are
borrowed. Furthermore, 'they' appears to have
been brought into the language earlier than the
78
other pronouns; writers in the 15th century used
"they" but were still using the older forms her
('their') and hem ('them"). It can be difficult to
recognise the Scandinavian words since the
languages are so closely related; many words
that look Scandinavian are actually native
English words. For instance. arm. foot. tree.
cow. stone, land, eat, and drink are all recorded
in early Old English. Odenstedt continues by
mentioning certain ways to decide whether a
word is a Scandinavian loan:
— Germanic /sk/ became // / (sh) in all
positions. This change ccurred later in
Scandinavia, and therefore words like shall,
shoulder and shin are native English words
whereas skin, skv and skirt are Scandinavian
words.
— The Old English word for 'take' was
niman. but in late Old English tacan is found.
The Old Norse word was taka, which shows
that it must have been borrowed from the
Scandinavians. In the same way, the word for
law' was originally al, but a later recording is
lagu, which comes from Old Norse.
In fact, judging by the large number of
Scandinavian words in the legal area, the
79
Vikings had a considerable impact upon the
law and order of the Anglo-Saxons. Some
examples are fellow ('partner'), law, and
outlaw. Even more Scandinavian words related
to the legal area existed in Old English, but
were later replaced. Not only did the
Scandinavian peoples bring their laws and
customs to the Danelaw, but their view on law
and legal custom was to a great extent
acknowledged by all of England.
Large numbers of Scandinavian loans are
also, not very surprisingly, found in war and
seafaring terms. For instance, keel, knife, and
slaughter. Today, a higher number of
Scandinavian words are found in the dialects of
Yorkshire and Scotland, than in the rest of
Britain. Similarly, in the northern and Scottish
dialects, words that do not exist in the southern
parts of the country are also found. For instance
gate (meaning 'street' or 'road'), ken ('know'),
and kirk ('church'). The importance of the
Vikings in Britain did not end with the fall of
the Danelaw; they continued raiding England
sporadically and in 1016 the Danish King Knut
(Canute) also became king over all of England.
However, his reign was short and it is fair to
80
say that with his death the decline of the Viking
Age started.
There also seems to be a difference between
the form taken by early and late Norse loans; in
Old English the Norse loans usually underwent
cognate substitution and took an English form,
but in Middle English loans the Norse form is
retained. A posible explanation is that the Old
English loans were borrowed by F.nglish
speakers while Old Norse was still a living
language, and the Middle English loans being
the result of Norse speakers shifting to English
as their own language slowly died out, and thus
brought the Norse words with them.
The Scandinavian influence also reached
into matters of grammar and syntax, although
this is more difficult to show and will not be
further explored here. However, the -s of the
third person singular has been attributed to the
Scandinavian influence, as well as the endingt
in words like scant and want, which was
originally the Norse neuter ending. The
inflectional endings were often the only
difference and obstacle to the mutual
understanding of Norse and English words, and
the loss of the inflections in Old English was
81
accelerated by the Scandinavian presence.
The Danelaw collapsed only some fifty
years after its establishment but the
Scandinavian settlers nevertheless remained in
the area. The West Saxons had gradually
reconquered it, and eventually the
Scandinavians accepted the Saxon king as their
own. They did not, however, live as an isolated
group; they were absorbed into the Anglo-
Saxon population, and intermarriage was
frequent.

Normans

One of the most important event on the

history of the English language is the Norman
Conquest in 1066. In 1066 King Edward (the
Confessor) died childless. Edward's chief
advisor (earl of West Saxon), Godwin, had a
son names Harold. Harold succeeded his father
Godwin and virtually ruled England the last 12
years of Edward's reign. Upon Edward's death,
Harold was elected King.William, the duke of
Normandy, was 2nd cousin to Edward, and
Edward had promised him the throne upon
Edward's death. Once William learns of
82
Harold's succession to the throne, William
begins a very detailed and careful plan to win
the crown. When Harold finally marshals his
army, he didn't have the numbers that William
did. However, the day of the big battle, Harold
managed a valiant fight and actually held
William off. According to history, military
might had nothing to do with William's victory.
Instead, Harold was killed, and in the confusion
without a leader, the English troops fell apart.
Thus, William was able to triumph at Hastings.
However, William had to burn and pillage
southeast England before the people gave in,
and on Christmas Day 1066, William was
crowned king.
William's reign virtually wipes out all of the
old English nobility, which replaced by a new
nobility — of Norman descent.
The ruling class continued to use their own
language-French. For 200 years after the
Conquest, the language of policy was French.
Numerous English people (those of the upper
classes) learned the language through marriage
and by association However, the language of
the masses remained English. Until the
beginning of the 13th century, French
83
continued to dominate as the language of
nobility. A very close connection existed
between the continent and England. The
nobility usually held land in both places:
therefore, travel between the two was fairly
common.
Fusion of the French and English-over time,
the two "cultures" assimilated and adjusted to
one another. Some nobility spoke English. This
would be a natural occurrence. Some clergy
preserved English, some of the nobility, and
clergy, then, representing the upper social
class, were bilingual. Knights learned French.
Merchants spoke both French and English.
Managers (sheriffs, bailiffs, etc.) on large
estates were bilingual.For the most part,
bilingualism extended only down to the middle
class.
King John lost Normandy in 1204. French
continued to be spoken by the upper class in
England, but not for different reasons. No
longer the "mother" tongue, French was spoken
as a matter of social custom and administrative
convention. However, with the separation of
nobility from interests in France and
Normandy, the upper classes were generally
84
using it. Because French use was fading and
English use becoming prevalent, the impact of
"borrowing" French vocabulary is major. When
an English term was unknown and needed to be
expressed, a French word or phrase was used.
On the whole English use was steady. By the
middle of the 13th century, French is
considered a foreign language. Some attempt to
preserve French existed in the clergy and from
scholars, but not much. The French that had
been spoken among "Englishmen" was
considered by Francophiles to be a "backard"
and butchered dialect.
The most important influence the French
language had on the English language as the
introduction of too many French words into
English. It should be mentioned that one of the
characteristics of Old English was to enlarge
its vocabulary hiefly by using prefixes and
suffixes and combining native elements into
self-interpreting compounds. But this habit
was somewhat weakened in Middle English.
In many cases where a new word could have
easily been formed on a native model, a
French word was borrowed instead.
Moreover, English people borrowed words
85
whose native equivalents existed in their
language. As we have seen one of the factors in
borrowing words is prestige. In cases of close
contact, the two languages may not have
the same status within the speech community
in which they are spoken. The language with
more powerful speakers will be regarded as
more prestigious. Generally, the less
prestigious language borrows from the most
prestigious one and the borrowing will be
concentrated in the semantic fields where the
most prestigious speakers have the greatest
influence. That is why after the Norman
Conquest we find a huge influx of the French
vocabulary into English mainly connected with
religion, army, art, government and
administration. These lexical items reflected
the interests of the French-speaking ruling
group, and had prestigious connotations.The
borrowing that occurred was not an immediate
process; rather, it occurred gradually.We can
trace the borrowings from French by two time
periods: before 1250 and after 1250.
A. Prior to 1250
l. Approximately 900 French words
borrowed
86
 2. Most of the 900 came in through language
contact between the nobility and the working
class
3. baron, noble, dame, servant, feast, etc., all
signifying the relationship between the classes
4. story, rime, etc., came in by way of
literature
5. The largest number of words to enter
during this period were, however, from the
church. The need to convey doctrine and belief
quickly accounts for this, the largest group.
B. After 1250
1. Of the two periods, more words entered
after 1250 when the language was in transition
from French back to English
2.The transference occurring during this
period included all categories of words and is
quite extensive.
C.French loan or borrowed words
1.Government and administrative-
government, govern, administer,crown, state,
empire, real, reign, royal, prerogative,
authority, parliament, assembly, statute.
2.Religion:
a. general-sermon, religion, theology,
prayer, confession, lesson, communion
87
 b. terms of rank/class within the church-
clergy, cardinal, chaplain, parson, pastor, vicar,
novice
c. terms associated with the church service
or with the way of life for the clergy-crucifix,
incense, lectern, image, chapter, abbey,
convent, sanctuary
d. terms that expressed fundamental
theological or religious concepts-creator,
savior, trinity, saint, miracle, faith, heresy,
reverence, devotion, sacrilege, temptation,
redemption, absolution, immortality, salvation
3. terms that expressed virtues-piety,
sanctity, charity, mercy, pity, obedience, virtue
4. form class words:
a. adjectives-divine, devout, reverend,
solemn
b. verbs-preach, pray, repent,confess,
adore, convert, ordain
3.Law
a. nouns-justice, equity, crime, bar,attorney,
petition, complaint, inquest, indictment, jury,
juror, panel, felon, evidence, proof, bail,
verdict, sentence, punishment, decree
b. verbs-plead, arraign, depose,arrest,
warrant, condemn, convictjudge, acquit, pardon
88
 c. other-arson, fraud, felony, trespass,
slander, libel, perjury, adultery, property,
estate, tenement, chattels, legacy, patrimony,
heir, executor
d. adjectives-just, innocent, culpable
4. Military-peace, enemy, defend, battle,
combat, siege, soldier, spy, vanquish
5. Social-fashion, dress, apparel, robe, lace,
embroidery, buckle, button, luxury, satin,
taffeta, blue, brown, vermilion, scarlet, jewel,
brooch, ivory, turquoise, amethyst, ruby,
emerald, sapphire, pearl, diamond, crystal,
appetite, taste, sustenance, beef, veal, pork,
bacon, sausage, tripe, gravy, biscuit, cream,
sugar, olives, salad, lettuce, fruits, grape,
orange, lemon, cherry, peach, pastry, tart, jelly,
treacle, spice, clove, thyme, herb, roast, stew,
fry, blanch, grate, mince, goblet, saucer,
curtain, couch, chair, lamp, blanket, quilt,
melody, checkers, conversation, rein, stallion,
trot, harness, mastiff, terrier, quail, peasant,
squirrel.
6. Culture and intellect-art, painting, music,
beauty, color, image, tone, ceiling, palace,
cathedral, mansion, tower, turret, porch, choir,
column, baptistry, prose, romance, chronicle,
89
tragedy, prologue, preface, title, volume,
chapter, paper, pen, study, logic, geometry,
grammar, treatise, gender, noun, clause, copy,
compile, physician, surgeon, distemper, gout,
plague, pestilence, stomach, poison.
7. Pervasive French influence on vocabulary
by 1300-action, adventure, affection, age, air,
bucket, calendar, cheer, city, coast, comfort,
cost, country, courage, debt, force, flower,
malice, manner, marriage, noise, odor, opinion,
order, pair, people, person, poverty, sign,
sound, waste.

I Answer the following questions

1. From which ethnonym does Britain
originate?
2. When did the first linguistic contact
butween continental Celtic and Germanic
peoples take place?
3. Why is the number of Celtic geographical
names in Britain larger than the number of
Celtic borrowings in the English language?
4. Why are there more Latin borrowings in
the English language than the Celtic ones?
5. Did the English borrow Latin words
directly?
90
 6. Which Latin word was used in the
formation of the geographical names Chester,
Colchester, Dorchester?
7. What is the difference between Celtic or
Latin borrowings and common Indo-European
words in the English language?
8. Why are more numerous Latin
borrowings connected with trade?
9. Why is it difficult to identify the
Scandinavian words in English?
10. To which language do the borrowings
with the letter-combination sk refer?
II. Find out with which layer of lexicon
the following French borrowings are
associated with:
theology; atterney; indictment; baron; noble;
reign; royal; faith; imortality; proof; verdict;
defend; combat; apparel; robe; olives; lettuce;
cathedral; mansion; estate; condemn; couch;
saucer; courage; peasant

III. Associate the following words with the

period of British history they were borrowed
into English:
Trousers; slogan; brogue; monger; segn;
street; law; skirt; baron; knife; sanctuary;
91
colleen; whiskey; gap; fann; pound; port; egg;
sister; servant; feast; fellow; skin; slaughter;
take; story; saint; charity; cardinal; felony;
pearl; car; bucket; thorp.

92
 3. The English Language Abroad
American English

The process of coining new lexical items

started as soon as the colonists began
borrowing names for unfamiliar flora, fauna,
and topography from the Native American
languages. Examples of such names are
opossum, raccoon, squash and moose (from
Algonquian). Other Native American
loanwords, such us wigwam or moccasin,
describe articles in common use among Native
Americans. The languages of the other
colonising nations also added to the American
vocabulary; for instance, cookie, cruller, sloop,
and pil (of a fruit) from Dutch; levee, portage
("carrying of boats or goods") and (probably)
gopher from French; barbecue, stevedore, and
rodeo from Spanish.
Among the earliest and most notable regular
"English" additions to the American
vocabulary, dating from the early days of
colonization through the early 19lh century, are
terms describing the features of the North
American landscape; for instance, run, branch,
fork, snag,bluff, gulch, neck (of the woods),
93
barrens, bottomland, notch, knob, riffle, rapids,
water gap, cutoff, trail, limberline and divide
Already existing words such as creek, slough,
sleet and (in later use) watershed received new
meanings that were unknown in England.
Other noteworthy American toponyms are
found among loanwords; forexample, prairie,
butte (French); bayou (Choctaw via Louisiana
French); coulee (Canadian French, but used
also in Louisiana with different meaning);
canyon, mesa, arroyo (Spanish); vlei, skate,
M/(Dutch, Hudson Valley).
The word corn, used in England to refer to
wheat (or any cereal), came to denote the plant
Zea mays, the most important crop in the U.S.,
originally named Indian corn by the earliest
settlers; wheat, rye. barley, oats. etc. came to be
collectively referred to as grain. Other notable
farm related vocabulary additions were the new
meanings assumed by barn (not only a building
for hay and grain storage, but also for housing
livestock) and learn (not just the horses, but
also the vehicle along with them), as well as. in
various periods, the terms range, (corn) crib,
truck, elevator, sharecropping and feed] of.
Ranch, later applied to a house style, derives
94
from Mexican Spanish: most Spanish
contributions came after the War of 1812, with
the opening of the West. Among these are,
other than toponyms. chaps (from
chaparreras), plaza, lasso, bronco, buckaroo,
rodeo: examples of "English" additions from
the cowboy era are bad man, maverick, chuck
("food") and Boot Hill; from the California
Gold Rush came such idioms as pay dirt or
strike it rich. The word blizzard probably
originated in the West.
With the new continent developed new
forms of dwelling, and hence a large inventory
of words designating real estate concepts (land
office, lot. outlands, waterfront, the verbs
locate and relocate, betterment, addition,
subdivision), types of property (log cabin,
adobe in the 18th century; frame house,
apartment, tenement house, shack, shanty in
the 19th century, project, condominium,
townhouse, split-level, mobile home, multi-
family in the 20n century), and parts thereof
(driveway, breezeway, backyard, dooryard;
clapboard, siding, trim, baseboard: sloop
(from Dutch), family room, den; and, in recent
years, central air, walkout basement).
95
 Ever since the American Revolution, a great
number of terms connected with the U.S.
political institutions have entered the language;
examples are run, gubernatorial, primary
election, carpetbagger (after the Civil War),
repeater, lame duck (a British term used
originally in Banking) and pork barrel. Some
of these are internationally used (for example,
caucus, gerrymander, filibuster, exit poll).
The development of industry and material
innovations throughout the 19th and 20th
centuries were the source of a massive stock of
distinctive new words, phrases and idioms.
Typical examples are the vocabulary of
railroading (see further at rail terminology)
and transportation terminology, ranging from
names of roads (from dirt roads and back
roads to freeways and parkways) to road
infrastructure (par &z'«g lot, overpass, rest
area), and from automotive terminology to
public transit (for example, in the sentence
"riding the subway downtown"); such
American introductions as commuter (from
commutation ticket), concourse, lo board (a
vehicle), lo park, double-parkand parallel park
(a car), double decker or the noun terminal
96
have long been used in all dialects of English.
Trades of various kinds have endowed
(American) English with household words
describing jobs and occupations (bartender,
longshoreman, patrolman, hobo, bouncer,
bellhop, roustabout, white collar, blue collar,
employee, boss [from Dutch], intern, busboy,
mortician, senior citizen), businesses and
workplaces (department store, supermarket,
thrift store, gift shop, drugstore, motel, main
street, gas station, hardware store, savings and
loan, hock [also from Dutch]), as well as
general concepts and innovations (automated
teller machine, smart card, cash register,
dishwasher, reservation [as at hotels],pay
envelope, movie, mileage, shortage, outage,
blood bank).
Already existing English words—such as
store, shop, dry goods, haberdashery, lumber
— underwent shifts in meaning; some—such
as mason, student, clerk, the verbs can (as in
"canned goods"), ship, fix, carry, enroll (as in
school), run (as in "run a business"), release
and haul — were given new significations,
while others (such as tradesman) have retained
meanings that disappeared in England. From
97
the world of business and finance came
breakeven, merger, downsize,
disintermediation, bottom line; from sports
terminology came, jargon aside, Monday-
morning quarterback, cheap shot, gameplan
(football); in the ballpark, out of left field, off
base, hit and run, and many other idioms from
baseball; gamblers coined bluff, blue chip, ante,
bottom dollar, raw deal, pass the buck, ace in
the hole, freeze-out, showdown; miners coined
bedrock, bonanza, peter out, pan out and the
verb prospect from the noun; and rail roadmen
are to be credited with make the grade,
sidetrack, head-on, and the verb railroad. A
number of Americanisms describing material
innovations remained largely confined to North
America: elevator, ground, gasoline; many
automotive terms fall in this category, although
many do not(hatchback, station wagon, tailgate,
motorhome, truck, pickup truck, lo exhaust).
In addition to the above-mentioned loans
from French, Spanish, Mexican Spanish,
Dutch, and Native American languages, other
accretions from foreign languages came with
19th and early 20th century immigration;
notably, from Yiddish (chutzpah, schmooze,
98
tush) and German — hamburger and culinary
terms like frankfurter/franks, liverwurst,
sauerkraut, wiener, deli(catessen): scram,
kinder gar ten, gesundheit; musical terminology
(whole note, half note, etc.); and apparently
cookbook, fresh ("impudent").
Finally, a large number of English
colloquialisms from various periods are
American in origin; some have lost their
American flavor while others have not (have a
nice day, sure),' many are now distinctly old-
fashioned (swell, groovy).Some English words
now in general use, such as hijacking, disc
jockey, boost, bulldoze and jazz, originated as
American slang.
American English has always shown a
marked tendency to use nouns as verbs.
Examples of verbed nouns are interview,
advocate, vacuum, lobby, pressure, rear-end,
transition, feature, profile, spearhead,
skyrocket, showcase, service (as a car), corner,
torch, exit (as in "exit the lobby"), factor (in
mathematics), gun ("shoot"), author (which
disappeared in English around 1630 and was
revived in the U.S. three centuries later) and,
out of American material, proposition, graft
99
(bribery), bad-mouth, vacation, major,
backpack, backtrack, intern, ticket (traffic
violations), hassle, blacktop, peer-review, dope
and OD, and, of course verbed as used at the
start of this sentence.
Compounds coined in the U.S. are for
instance foothill, badlands, landslide (in all
senses), overview (the noun),
backdrop,teenager, brainstorm, bandwagon,
hitchhike, smalltime, deadbeat, frontman,
lowbrow and highbrow, hell-bent, foolproof,
nitpick, about-face (later verbed), upfront (in
all senses), fixer-upper, no-show; many of
these are phrases used as adverbs or (often)
hyphenated attributive adjectives: non-profit,
for-profit, free-for-all, ready-to-wear, catchall,
low-down, down-and-out, down and dirty, in-
your-face, nip and tuck; many compound nouns
and adjectives are open: happy hour, fall guy,
capital gain, road trip, wheat pit, head start,
plea bargain;somQ of these are colorful (empty
nester. loan shark, ambulance chaser, buzz saw,
ghetto blaster, dust bunny), others are
euphemistic (differently abled (physically
challenged), human resources, affirmative
action, correctional facility).
100
 Many compound nouns have the form verb
plus preposition: add-on, stopover, lineup,
shakedown, iryoul, spin-off, rundown
("summary"),shooloul. holdup, hideout,
comeback, cookout, kickback, makeover,
takeover, rollback ("decrease"), rip-off, come-
on, shoo-in, fix-up, tie-in, tie-up ("stoppage"),
stand-in. These essentially are nouned phrasal
verbs; some prepositional and phrasal verbs
are in fact of American origin (spell out, figure
out, hold up, brace up, size up, rope in, back
up/off/down/out, step down, miss out, kick
around, cash in, rain out. check in and check
out (in all senses), in ("inform"), kick in or
throw in ("contribute"), square off, sock in,
sock away, factor in/out, come down with, give
up on, run into and across ("meet"), stop by,
pass up. put up (money), set up ("frame"), trade
in, pick up on, pick up after, lose out.
Noun endings such as -ee (retiree), -ery
(bakery), -star (gangster) and -dan (beautician)
are also particularly productive. Some verbs
ending in -ize are of U.S. origin; for example,
fetishize, prioritize, burglarize, accessorize,
itemize, editorialize, customize,
notarize,wealherize, winterize, Mirandize: and
101
so are some back-formations (locate, fine-tune,
evolule, curate, donate, emote, upholster, peeve
and enthuse). Among syntactical constructions
that arose in the U.S. are as o/'(with dates and
times), outside of, headed for, meet up with,
back of, convince someone to..., not to be about
to and lack for.
Americanisms formed by alteration of some
existing words include notably pesky, phony,
rambunctious, pry (as in "pry open," from
prize), putter (verb), buddy, sundae, skeeler,
sashay and kitty-corner. Adjectives that arose
in the U.S. are for example, lengthy, bossy, cute
and cutesy, grounded (of a child), punk (in all
senses}, sticky (of the weather), through (as in
"through train," or meaning "finished"), and
many colloquial forms such as peppy or wacky.
American blends include motel, guesstimate,
infomercial and televangelist.
A number of words and meanings that
originated in Middle English or Early Modern
English and that always have been in everyday
use in the United States dropped out in most
varieties of British English; some of these have
cognates in Lowland Scots. Terms such as
fall("autumn"}, faucet, diaper, candy, skillet,
102
eyeglasses, and obligate, are often regarded as
Americanisms. Fall for example came to
denote the season in 16th century England, a
contraction of Middle English expressions like
"fall of the leaf and "fall of the year".
During the 17th century, English immigration
to the British colonies in North America was at
its peak and the new settlers took the English
language with them. While the term fall
gradually became obsolete in Britain, it became
the more common term in North America.
Gotten (past participle of get) is often
considered to be an Americanism, although
there are some areas of Britain, such as
Lancashire and North-eastern England, that
still continue to use it and sometimes also use
putlen as the past participle for put (which is
not done by most speakers of American
English).
Other words and meanings, to various
extents, were brought back to Britain,
especially in the second half of the 20 n century;
these include hire ("to employ"}, quit ("to
stop," which spawned quitter in the U.S.), /
guess (famously criticized by H. W. Fowler),
baggage, hit (a place), and the adverbs overly
103
and presently ("currently"). Some of these, for
example monkey wrench and wastebasket,
originated in 19th century Britain.
The man dative subjunctive (as in "the City
Attorney suggested that the case not be closed')
is livelier in American English than it is in
British English. It appears in some areas as a
spoken usage and is considered obligatory in
contexts that are more formal. The adjectives
mad meaning "angry", smart meaning
"intelligent", and sick meaning "ill" are also
more frequent in American (these meanings are
also frequent in Hiberno-English) than British
English. Regional differences
After the Civil War. the settlement of the
western territories by migrants from the
Eastern U.S. led to dialect mixing and leveling,
so that regional dialects are most strongly
differentiated along the Eastern seaboard. The
Connecticut River and Long Island Sound is
usually regarded as the southern/western extent
of New England speech, which has its roots in
the speech of the Puritans from East Anglia
who settled in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
The Potomac River generally divides a
group of Northern coastal dialects from the
104
beginning of the Coastal Southern dialect area;
in between these two rivers several local
variations exist, chief among them the one that
prevails in and around New York City and
northern New Jersey, which developed on a
Dutch substratum after the English conquered
New Amsterdam. The main features of Coastal
Southern speech can be traced to the speech of
the English from the West Country who settled
in Virginia after leaving England at the time of
the English Civil War.
American English and British English differ
at the levels of phonology, phonetics.
Differences in grammar are relatively minor,
and normally do not affect mutual
intelligibility; these include: different use of
some verbal auxiliaries; formal (rather than
notional) agreement with collective nouns;
different preferences for the past forms of a
few verbs (for example, AmE/BrE:
learned/learnt, burned/burnt, snuck/sneaked,
dove/dived)', different prepositions and adverbs
in certain contexts (for example. AmE in
school, BrE at school); and whether or not a
definite article is used, in very few cases (AmE
to the hospital, BrE to hospital; contrast,
105
however, AmE actress Elizabeth Taylor, BrE
the actress Elizabeth Taylor}. Often, these
differences are a matter of relative preferences
rather than absolute rules; and most are not
stable, since the two varieties are constantly
influencing each other.
Differences in orthography are also trivial.
Some of the forms that now serve to
distinguish American from British spelling
(color for colour, center for centre, traveler for
traveller, etc.) were introduced by Noah
Webster himself; others are due to spelling
tendencies in Britain from the 17th century until
the present day (for example, -ise for -ize,
although the Oxford English Dictionary still
prefers the -ize ending) and cases favored by
the francophile tastes of 19th century Victorian
England, which had little effect on AmE (for
example, programme for program, manoeuvre
for maneuver, skilful for skillful, cheque for
check, etc.). One of the most common spelling
differences is that words ending in "-re" in BrE
are rendered as "-er" in AmE (such as
"centre"and "center", "theatre"and "theater",
and "metre" and"meter").
AmE sometimes favors words that are
106
morphologically more complex, whereas BrE
uses clipped forms, such as AmE
transportation and BrE transport or where the
British form is a back-formation, such as AmE
burglarize and BrE burgle (from burglar}. It
should, however, be noted that while
individuals usually use one or the other, both
forms will be widely understood and mostly
used alongside each other within the two
systems.
Specific word coining is observed in
American slang where notional words turn into
suffixes:
— beefburger, cheesebuger, mutton-burger,
sausage-burger, turkey-burger were coined on
the model of hamburger which is artificially
separated into ham and burger, the second part
being used as a suffix to form above mentioned
food names;
— The word dog is used as a semi-affix to
denote «man», usually sly, cunny;
lucky dog («happy»), shoe-dog («shoe-
maker»), war dog («a man has taken part in
numerous wars»), smart dog («smart»,
«beautiful»);
— The word monkey turns into a semi-affix
107
to denote «worker»: company monkey
(company worker»), wheel monkey («wheel
worker»);
— The word happy turns into a semi-affix
denoting «enthusiast»: rock-happy («rock
enthusiast»), coin-happy («coin enthusisast»).
Second World War millions of Englishmen
were exposed to the direct impact of American
speech via the American "talkies", as they were
then called .This resulted an adoption specially
by the younger generation in Britain, of a great
many American words and expressions. Some
of the words and phrases now widely current in
BE can be directly traced to certain American
films. A notable example is the verb to
doodle-"to scribble aimlessly, especially when
the attention is elsewhere", which was first
heard in the film "'Mr. Deeds goes to Town"
dated 1937.
As to the relative importance of the different
types of mass media as vehicles of American
linguistic influence on BE ,the most linguists
believe that pride of place should be given to
the cinema. Ever since the first American
movies were shown in Britain ,alarmed voices
have been raised in Britain ,by linguists and
108
laymen alike, against the assault of Hollywood
on "'the purity of British English"
The British press, though it cannot match the
films in the role of purveyor of
Americanisms ,makes an important
contribution to popularizing them in Britain
"bobby-soxer-"a girl in her teens, was already
well known in England in die 1940s long
before British teenage girls took wearing short
socks(bobby socks). It came from reports about
hordes of adolescent girls hero-worshipping
popular actors.
Many British newspapers ,for the sake of
expediency ,publish news items and stories
received from American correspondents
without editing them. As a result the British
reader is exposed to Americanisms without
being aware of it. The same is true of radio and
television. B. Foster cites examples of the early
editions of BBC news bulletins containing
Americanisms which in later editions were
replaced by their English equivalents. But even
copy written by British newspaper and radio
correspondents frequently contains
Americanisms. This may happen for one of two
reasons. On the one hand , many British
109
correspondents who read American material or
spend long periods in the US use
Americanisms unconsciously. But on the other
hand, the use of Americanisms may be
conscious, as when a British journalist employs
Americanisms in the description of the
American scene to add local colour or when he
uses them just to make his own style seem
more racy, up-to date.
All of which leads to the conclusion that
much of the borrowing from All into BE is
unconscious. According to B.Foster, "as the
flood of Americanisms in the standard
language increases, so most people lose their
ability to recognize them for that they are." The
speaker or writer who first uses an
Americanism may do so consciously, but the
person who uses it after him may not recognize
it for an Americanism and think it just a British
word or usage he did not know before. An
Englishman's reaction when he confronted with
an unknown English word is often to say:"That
must be an Americanism". But more often than
not he is not sure whether it is neologism
formed in BE or an American borrowing.
The present stage of the contacts between
110
AE and BE is characterized by the wholesale
importation of Americanisms into BE. This is
due to a combination of linguistic and extra
linguistic factors. The linguistic factor is the
common structure of AE and BE. The extra-
linguistic factors are twofold: the growing
American political,economic and cultural
influence on Britain and the increased role of
the mass communications media as vehicles of
American linguistic influence.
One is first of all struck by the relative
paucity of the so called lexical borrowing, i.e.
borrowing of a new form (word) together with
its meaning. Apart from words denoting
geographical features and the peculiarities of
life on the continent of North America, the
number of new words borrowed by BE from
AE is insignificant. One might mention such
words as bunkum - "empty, insincere talk,
humbug" and corresponding verb to debunk -
"to expose lies, false pretensions, etc. "blurb"
advertisement on book jacket", gimmick -
"trick, device, catch phrase, etc. used for
publicity purposes "O.K., which needs no
translation or explanation, and a few other
words.
111
 The majority of lexical borrowings from AE
into BE have been formed of native English
word-stock. One can list a great many
compound words formed in AE and borrowed
by British English:
Doubletalk-"ambiguous and deceptive talk"
,sidetrack-"divert or to be diverted
"hindsight-"ability to see after the event, what
should have been done", breakthrough-“new
discovery or achievement", know-
how-"technical skill", egghead- “intellectual”
babysitter -"a person hired to take care of a
child while parents are away".
But perhaps the biggest number of
borrowings from AE into BE are borrowings
not of new words, but of new meanings,
something that, obviously, cannot take place
between different languages. Thus ,the
following meanings of English words have
been borrowed by modern English from AE:
quit-"io abandon country" ,"cease doing
something", "withdraw from an organization";
alibi - "excuse", allergy and allergic -"feeling
disgust", etc. Another feature of relations
between AE and BE is the borrowing of
derivatives. For instance, the Americanism
112
balding (from the adjective bald) is now widely
used in BE in place of the traditional English
expression going bald. Similarly, the family of
words based on the morpheme star (in its
figurative meaning)which included in BE the
noun star, the verb to star and the adjective star
(as in the expression to do a star turn),all
known since the early music-halls in
Britain ,has been enriched by the Americanism
co-star ''share or cause to share prominence in a
film, play, etc."It is important to note that these
and other borrowed derivatives are formed on
patterns that are just as productive in BE as
they are in AE, and, as in most other cases it is,
linguistically, a mere accident that they were
formed first in America and not in Britain.
The next big group of borrowings from AE
includes phraseological units and word
combinations which were formed in America.
Here again one can see that structurally the
numerous phraseological expressions and
idioms borrowed from AE reveal no features
that would distinguish them from the
phraseological units and word combinations in
BE. Nothing reveals the American origin of
such word combinations and phrases, now
113
current in BE, as disc jockey (and its
abbreviated form D.J.)-" a person conducting a
radio programme of recorded music", elbow
room-'room enough to move or work in ",
grass roots -"the common people, the rank -
and-file", ghost writer-"man writing speeches
for a politician", to be in the red-"io have an
adverse trading balance",(e.g.," how to pull
Britain out of the red? - The theme of a
symposium of businessmen recently held in
London),to jump the hurdle-a slang humorous
expression for" to get married".
When they are used diachronically we see
the most striking feature of the borrowing of
phraseological units and word combinations
into BE. Let us take a few examples. The
phrase all time(often. used attributively ,as in
all- time hit~"a popular song or tune", all lime
high (or low)-"the highest or lowest
point)received its new lease of life in AE
whence it was borrowed into BE. However,
similar uses of the combination all time have
been registered in XIX century British sources.
The survey of the main types of borrowings
from AE into BE permits to make certain
conclusions as to the specific features of these
114
borrowings as compared with borrowings
between different languages.

Canadian English

There are approximately two thousand

words or expressions that are native to Canada,
or which have a meaning peculiar to or
characteristics of Canada. The latter words and
expressions are referred to as Canadianisms.
The term Canadianisms can also be extended to
include words borrowed from other languages
which do not appear in other varieties of
English.
A good deal of Canadianisms were founded
out of necessity; they describe features, objects,
institutions which were unknown to the
European experience or noticeably different
from things existing elsewhere. In other words,
they are reminiscent of the early days of white
settlement, primarily composed of American
Loyalists and British settlers. Thus, many
Canadianisms are words coined or borrowed to
identify feature of the new landscape: the
chutes, or saults, of the rivers, the muskeg of
the hinterland, the buttes and parklands of the
115
prairies, and the bluffs, or islands of trees, on
the flat prairie are but a few. New trees and
plants: cat spruce, Douglas fir, Manitoba
maple, Sitka spruce, and tamarack;
kinnikinnick, Labrador tea, Pembina berry,
saskatoon and soapalallie. On the landscape
and amongst the trees, birds were discovered:
Canada goose, fool hen, siwash duck, turkey
vulture and whiskey jack. And not surprisingly,
explorers and settlers crossed paths with new
animals and reptiles: cabri, caribou,
Massassauga rattler, pecan, siffleur and wapiti.
Also in the many creeks, rivers, and lakes, they
found fish of all sorts: cisco, inconnu,
maskinonge, kokanee, ouananiche, oolichan,
tuladi and wendigo. Finally, political term such
as M.P.P., acclamation, and endorsation tell us
something of the newly founded institutions.
The aforementioned Canadianisms have
been followed by a succession of newer
Canadianisms, some of them evoked by more
modern phenomena: remittance man and its
congeners remittance grabber and remittance
farmer; suitcase farmer; mountie; hydro; bush
pilot; chuck wagon; face of and deke; grid
road; cat train; loonie and toonie etc..
116
 All of the Canadianisms listed can be found
in the Canadian Oxford English Dictionary
save timbits, which are little round donuts one
can buy at Tim Hortons, a Canadian coffee
shop. And they reflect the Canadian (not
American) way of life, past, present, and
future. Indeed, to write a history of Canada
without these words would be to write an
incomplete and thus unsatisfactory history.
Canadian English should not be described as
a mixture of American and British English with
an insignificant number of Canadianisms
added. Canadian English, like all 'Englishes',
possesses an important characteristic, referred
to as wholesale borrowing, which has allowed
it to develop a very rich vocabulary. Canadians
have in the past and will most likely in the
future continue to borrow freely from both
American and British English; however, once a
lexeme is borrowed, it has the possibility to
evolve differently. In other words, Canadians
appropriate it to suit their needs. The lexeme
chesterfield is a par exemplar.
According to Robert Hendrickson in the
Encyclopedia of word and phrase origins, the
term chesterfield is commonly applied to a sofa
117
in honor of Philip Stanhope, the forth earl of
Chesterfield (1694-1773). However,
Hendrickson points out that it is more likely
that a latter earl of Chesterfield invented them,
which earl he does not know. At any rate,
according to the OED, it was used to refer to a
couch in 1900. According to Carver in
American Regional Dialects the term appears
to have come into use in Canada around 1903
and in Northern California about the same
time. The Jrnl. Canadian Linguistics
Association (qtd. in OED) notes chesterfield
seems to be in general use throughout Canada,
though the usual American sofa is also known
and used. Almost everywhere in the U.S
chesterfields are cigarettes and nothing more.
In Great Britain, a davenport couch was
sometimes referred to as a chesterfield but this
is obsolete. The point to be taken is that since
chesterfield has entered Canadian English it
has evolved differently because Canadians
have appropriated it to suit their own needs. To
be sure, although chesterfield is not originally
Canadian, it is thought of as such by Canadians
because Canadians commonly use the word to
refer to a sofa or couch, while the American
118
and British do not.
Another example which should clarify the
concept of appropriation is the interjection eh.
Although many Canadians believe that it is a
Canadianism, it is not. As Avis points out in
his paper "So eh? is Canadian, eh?" "the
interjection did not originate in Canada and is
not peculiar to the English spoken in Canada.
Indeed, eh? appears to be in general use
wherever English speakers hand their hats; and
in one form or another it has been in general
use for centuries". However, the frequency and
the context in which it occurs in Canadian
speech is remarkably different from both
American and British native speakers and thus
it is a distinguishing characteristic of Canadian
speech.
I Answer the questions
1. What factors influenced formation of
American English?
2. How did the new forms of dwelling affect
American English?
3. When was American lexicon particularly
enriched with political, industrial and
household words?
4. What semantic changes took place in
119
American vocabulary?
5. With what innovations was American
English enriched.
6. From which immigrant language were
hamburger, frankfurter, livewurst, wienier,
delicatessen borrowed?
7. Which words originated as American
slang?
8. Which type of canversions has always
shown a marked tendency in American
English?
9. Which new Americanisms were coined by
means of alteration of some existing words?
10. Which Americanisms were coined
through semantical change?
11. What differences are observed in
American and British grammer?
12. What are the sources of American
impact on British English?
13. What kind of Americanisms were
borrowed into British English?
II. Find out which languages the following
Americanisms were borrowed from. Define
their meanings.
shanty, bonanza, frankfurter, wienier, candy,
bunkum, debunk, know-how, egghead,
120
babysitter, quit, blurb, doubletalk, disc jockey,
elbow room, ghost writer, to jump the hurdle,
cookie, portage, gopher, barbecue, stevedore,
sloop, pil, bottomland, limberline opossum,
racoon, squash, moose, gimmick.
III. Match the following Americanisms
and Canadianisms to their common English
counterparts:

1. chesterfield rat
2. caribou bisquits
3. squash autumn
4. doubletalk trick
5. quit deer
6. opossum insincere talk
7. fall stop
8. cookie pumpkin
9. gimmick ambigious
10. grass roots the common
people
11. bunkum sofa

121
 Australian and New Zealandian Englishes

A number of the most culturally important

Australian terms developed towards the end of
the nineteenth century, at precisely the time
that Australian English was generating its
Cultivated and Broad forms. Battler (especially
in its present manifestation of little Aussie
battler) is one of the most positive words in
Australian English, and it usually refers to a
person who works hard to make a decent living
in difficult circumstances. Initially, the battler
was a person who scrounged a living on the
edges of society: an itinerant and irregularly
employed rural worker struggling to survive
(1898); a person who frequented racecourses in
search of a living (1895); a prostitute (1898).
Battler eventually divested itself of the
associations of the mug punter and the
prostitute, but even in its earliest uses there is
evidence of strong sympathy and admiration
for working-class people who eke out their
existence with resilience and courage.
The opposite of the battler is the bludger—
one of the most derogatory of Australian
words. The bludger is a person who lives off
122
the efforts of others, a cadger and an idler, a
person who expects others to do all the work.
The history of this word helps to explain
something of the moral condemnation that
bludger and its verb to bludge typically carry.
Australian bludger is a form of Standard
English bludgeoner 'a person who is armed
with and doesn't hesitate to use a bludgeon, a
short stout club'.
In Australia the bludger became a pimp who
was prepared to protect his financial stake in a
prostitute by resorting to the violence of the
bludgeon. The salient feature in this, and all
later senses, is that the person who is called a
bludger is living off the work of another and,
from this sense, it is a short step to the use of
bludger as a generalized term of abuse.
Dinkum emerges at about the same time.
Dinkum is from British dialect, where it meant
primarily 'work; a fair share of work'. The
notion of 'fairness' has always been associated
with dinkum, and it is from this connotation of
'fairness' that the particularly Australian
meaning 'reliable, genuine, honest, true'
developed in the first decade of the twentieth
century. It was also at this time that the
123
collocation fair go appeared, an important
expression of egalitarian principles. The
continuing significance of this phrase in
Australian society is evidenced by the fact that
a recent Federal Government booklet Life in
Australia (2007), aimed at new migrants,
explains what is meant by a fair go in
Australia: 'Australians value equality of
opportunity and what is often called a "fair go".
This means that what someone achieves in life
should be a product of their talents, work an
effort rather than their birth or favouritism.
Australians have a spirit of egalitarianism that
embraces mutual respect, tolerance and fair
play... The aim is to er sure there are no formal
class distinctions in Australian society'.
Although dinkum(and its variant fair dinkum)
appeared in the 1890s, the evidence indicates
that its really widespread use occurred during
the First World War.
It was out of the First World War that Anzac
(an acronym formed from the initial letters of
Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) and
digger (originally a soldier engaged in the
digging of trenches, echoing its earlier use for a
person digging for gold) emerged in the sense
124
'an Australian soldier'. By the end of the war
both terms were being used emblematically to
reflect the traditional view of the virtues
displayed by those who served in the Gallipoli
campaign, especially as these virtues were seen
as national characteristics. Such terms are part
of a rich tradition of Australian colloquialisms
that became established in the first half of the
twentieth century: bonzer 'excellent'; Buckley's
chance'no chance at all'; cobber 'mate'; crook
'dishonest, unpleasant, ill'; dag 'a character, an
entertaining eccentric' (later 'an unfashionable
person, a nerd'); plonk 'cheap wine' (an
example of a word of Australian derivation
adopted in Britain, and elsewhere, with little
awareness of its origin); pom 'an English
person'; rort 'an act of fraud or s; arp practice';
wog 'a flu-like illness'; wowser 'a puritanical
person, a killjoy', and so on.
Some elements of aboriginal languages have
been adopted by Australian English- mainly as
names for places, flora and fauna (for example
dingo) and local culture. Many such are
localised, and do not form part of general
Australian use, while others, such as kangaroo,
boomerang, budgerigar, wallaby and so on
125
have become international. Beyond that, little
has been adopted into the wider language,
except for some legalised terms and slang.
We can also mention unique and, indeed,
colourful Austra "alian metaphors and similes,
as
— as bald as a bandicoot — “completely
bald”
— as cunning as a dunny rat – “cunny”,
“sly”
— as lonely as a country dunny – “lonely”,
“abandoned”
— flat out like a lizard drinking – “busy”
Some elements of aboriginal languages have
been incorporated into Australian English,
mainly as names for places, flora and fauna (for
example, dingo, kangaroo). Beyond that, few
terms have been adopted into the wider
language, except for some localised terms, or
slang. Some examples are cooee and hard
yakka. The former is a high-pitched call which
travels long distances and is used to attract
attention. Cooee has also become a national
distance: if he's within cooee, we'll spot him.
Hard yakka means hard work and is derived
from yakka, from the Yagara/Jagara language
126
once spoken in the Brisbane region. Also from
the Brisbane region comes the word bung
meaning broken. A failed piece of equipment
might be described as having bunged up or
referred to as on the bung or gone bung. Bung
is also used to describe an individual who is
pretending to be hurt; such individual is said to
be bunging it on. In Western Australia the
Nyoongah word Winyarn, meaning “poor" or
“sick".
Aboriginal word, didgeridoo (a well known
wooden ceremonial musical instrument) is
probably an onomatopaoeic word of Western
invention. It has also been suggested that it
may have an Irish derivation, use a variety of
colourful terms to refer to people. These terms
may indicate such things as the persons
ethnicity, the place where the person resides,
the social status of the person, the persons
behaviour, etc. Many of these words occur in
other English dialects, especially New Zealand
English, whilst others are unique to Australian
English.
There are a number of dialectal words and
phrases used in New Zealand English. These
are mostly informal terms that are more
127
common in casual speech.
New Zealand adopted decimal currency in
the 1960s and the metric system in the 1970s.
Despite this, several imperial measures are still
widely understood and encountered, such as
feet and inches for a person's height, pounds
and ounces for an infant's birth weight, and in
colloquial terms such as referring to drinks in
pints.The word "spud" for potato, now
common throughout the English-speaking
world, originated in New Zealand English.
Many of these relate to words used to refer
to common items, often based on which major
brands become eponyms:

New Australian Explanation

Zelandian
Ice block Icy pole A frozen, water-
based frozen snack,
an ice pop, popsicle
or ice
Jandals Candy Thongs. Outdoor
floss footwear, consisting
Fairy floss of a flat sole held
candy loosely on the foot
floss or by a Y-shaped strap -
128
 cotton flip- flops.
candy

Jersey Jumper Jumper or sweater.

In New Zealand and
Australia "jersey" is
also used for top part
of sports uniform
(e.g. for rugby) -
another term for a
sports jersey,
guernsey, is
frequently used in
Australia but only
rarely heard in New
Zealand
Crib/Bach Shack A small, often very
modest holiday
property, often at the
seaside
Dairy 'Milk bar Convenience store.
In larger cities in
New Zealand
convenience store is
used due to
immigration (and to
129
 current NZ law
forbidding "dairy"
from selling alcohol),
though "dairy" is
used commonly in
conversation. In New
Zealand in the 1950s
and 1960s "milk
bar" referred to a
soda shop. In some
'states of Australia
"milk bar" is used;
other states use
"deli".

Many local everyday words have been

borrowed from the Maori language, including
words for local flora, fauna, place names and
the natural environment.
The dominant influence of Maori on New
Zealand English is lexical. A 1999 estimate
based on the W ellington corpora of written
and spoken New Zealand English put the
proportion of words of Maori origin at
approximateoy 0,6%, mostly place and
personal names.
130
 The everyday use of Maori words, usually
colloquial, occurs most prominently among
youth, young adults And Maori populations.
Examples include words like «kia ora»
(«hello»), or «kai» («food») which almost all
New Zelanders know.
Maori is ever present And has a significant
conceptual influence in the legislature,
government, and community agencies (e.g.
health And education), where legislation
requires that proceedings and documents are
translated into Maori (under certain
circumstances, and when requested). Political
discussion and analysis of issues of
sovereignth, environmental management,
health, and social well-being thus rely on
Maori at least in part. Maori as a spoken
language is particularly important wherever
community consultation occurs.
Recognisable regional variations are slight,
with the exception of Southland, where the
"Southland burr" (see above) is heard. It is also
common in the southern part of neighbouring
Otago. This southern area formed a traditional
repository of immigration from Scotland (see
Dunedin). Several words and phrases common
131
in Scots or Scottish English persist in this area:
examples include the use of weeto mean
"small", and phrases such as to do the messages
meaning "to go shopping". Taranaki has also
been said to have a minor regional accent,
possibly due to the high number of immigrants
from the South-West of England, however this
becoming less-pronounced.
Some Maori have an accent distinct from the
general New Zealand accent, tending to use
Maori words more frequently. Bro'Town was a
TV programme that exaggerated Maori,
Polynesian, and other accents. Linguists
recognise two main New Zealand accents,
denoted "Pakeha English" and "Maori
English"; with the latter strongly influenced by
syllable-timed Maori speech patterns. Pakeha
English is beginning to adopt similar rhythms,
distinguishing it from other stress-timed
English accents.
Bogan — a derogatory term describing a
person (usually Caucasian) who is perceived to
be uncultured, uneducated, and/or of a lower
class background.
chips and chippies, — potato chips or
French fries (USA). Shared with the UK and
132
some other Commonwealth countries.
chunder. slang — vomit, from "Watch out
under.
chunder mile — a once popular sporting
event, particularly at universities, in which
participants would run a lap of a running track,
eat a cold pie, scull a jug of beer, and continue
until the above 'chunder1 would occur. Now
largely banned by the university authorities.
Claytons, slang — low-quality imitation,
not the real thing. Originated in Australia. For
example, a hasty, temporary repair may be only
a Claytons solution to a problem. Originally
from the brand-name of a non-alcoholic
whisky-flavoured beverage. Generally used by
the older generation.
crook 1. sick, ill; as in "feeling crook". 2.
criminal, thief; criminal, unjust, unfair.
fanny, slang — a crude word for female
genitals, as in the UK. Although, sometimes
buttocks as in the USA. Words such as "Fanny
Pack" should be avoided in New Zealand (the
New Zealand term is "beltbag" or "bumbag").
footpath — pavement or sidewalk. Shared
with Australia.
flat — a rented dwelling. Often a large
133
multilevel home will be converted into an
upstairs and downstairs flats, but there are
fully-detached flats and blocks of flats as well.
The term apartment is usually used for blocks
of flats with shared internal access. (This is
distinctly different from the British usage of the
term, which is restricted to units within a block
of flats). Also flatting, to share a flat.
footy, slang — football (usually Rugby
Union, rarely League or soccer).
G'day!/ Gidday!, interj. — A friendly,
informal greeting, as in Australian English
(From "good day") Examples, Gidday mate.
Mostly used by the older generation.
good as gold - Great, fine - as a form of
agreement.
have someone on — To pull someone's leg: I
was just having you on.
kiwi — informal a New Zealander or as an
adjective instead of New Zealand. New
Zealanders never use kiwi to refer to kiwifruit.
Used in foreign exchange circles to refer to the
New Zealand dollar.
lolly, — any of various sweets (pieces of
candy). Iced lollies are called "ice blocks".
pom, — British person, usually English.
134
Possibly from Prisoner Of (Her) Majesty.
rubber - Another word for an eraser. It is
called this because you "rub out" mistakes, and
because they were made of rubber.Shared with
the UK. Note condoms are never referred to as
'rubbers'.
scab - verb and noun, meaning the act of (or
someone) scrounging, asking for food or
money.
sesh — slang a period of time spent
smoking marijuana. Shortened from 'session'.
Less commonly used to refer to marijuana
directly, ie to ask someone "have you got a
sesh?" means the same as "do you have any
marijuana?"
your shout - your turn to buy - usually the
next round of alcoholic drinks
smoko, — rest break during work,
originating in the days when smoking was a
common practice and would take place during
such breaks. Pronounced "smoke-o".
super, — the old age pension scheme.
Contraction of "superannuation".
sweet as/sweet, adj. — fine as far as I'm
concerned. The use of 'as' as an intensifier for
adjectives has spread, for example 'It's cold as
135
outside', or This summer has been hot as.
'Sweet as' was, until recently with the exporting
of NZ television and humour, unique to NZ.
ta - possibly a contraction of Thanks', can
mean both 'Goodbye' and Thanks. Shared with
UK.
togs - bathing suit; swimming costume.
Non-gender specific, can apply to speedos,
swimming shorts, bikini, or any swimming
clothing.
up the duff — As in UK a noun for a
pregnant woman, e.g. "I heard she was up the
duff"
wag, slang v. — To play truant, as in Tom's
wagging school today.
wagon. — station wagon (USA), estate car
(UK). Contraction of "station wagon"; the full
term is often used.
bach, — a small holiday home, usually near
the beach, often with only one or two rooms
and of simple construction. Pronounced
"batch". Comes from bachelor. (See also 'crib',
below).
boondocks. — rural, isolated part of the
country (not unique, however)
chilly bin - An Esky or other portable
136
polystyrene/plastic food and beverage cooler
choice! — informal excellent! Great idea!
chur bro — Slang, humorous 'pronounced as
a deep 'chair‘ usually a strong voicing of
thanks but also a parting salutation. Shortened
from "cheers brother" although can be said to
either male or female. Common in Auckland.
More recently this can and has often been
shortened to "chur bo", as "bro" loses its 'r'.
crib — another word for bach, more
commonly used in the south of the South
Island.
dag/dagg — similar to a "hard-case" i.e. a
comedian or funny person. Commonly used in
the phrase: "What a dag!". NZ comedian John
Clarke's stage name Fred Dagg was influenced
by this.
dairy — equivalent to the British term
corner shop or American term convenience
store.
dak — marijuana
The Ditch — slang the Tasman Sea, the
"ditch" separating New Zealand and Australia,
almost always used in the phrase: "across the
ditch", meaning, Australia. Occasionally also
refers to Cook Strait, which separates the two
137
main islands of the country.
domain — as well as its common overseas
uses, a public park or reserve, often with sports
or camping facilities.
egg - mild insult meaning 'fool' or 'dork'.
Enjoyed widespread use in the 1980s, still used
today. Used to be used occasionally with the
partner (and now all but obsolete) "spoon".
eh! (occasionally spelled "aye") — Slang
used for emphasis at the end of a sentence, eh!
(A similar but not identical usage is found in
Canadian English). Possibly adapted by
derivation from the Maori oral punctuitive
syllable "e"
eoh; eoa; aoh (no agreed spelling,
conversational only) derived from the Maori "e
hoa" (friend). Used as a friendly term meaning
"mate" in the NZEng equivalent, or bro; also
used as "hey" or "yo" in place of subject's name
if at the beginning of a phrase. Non-gender
specific, and pronounced like a very short,
clipped "our" perhaps without the final “r”, or
like out without the T. Popularised by the
television show 'broTown1, where it is both
pronounced and written as 'ow'. "Eoh, you
coming or not?"; "Where you been eoh?".
138
 freezing works — a meat-packing plant, an
abattoir.
fulla — slang guy, from 'fellow'.
Godzone - informal New Zealand:
corruption from 'God's Own Country.
Gruds - slang underpants.
hard case — slang a person who has a very
good sense of humour, a comedian.
joker - bloke, guy usually a general term for
kiwi male, with positive connotations.
Sometimes a "good joker" or "funny joker",
never used in derogation.
hamu (pron. ha-moo) - verb or noun
meaning scab (as above) or scrounge. Bay of
Plenty origins, uncommon elsewhere.
Mainland — informal usually, but not
always, refers (sometimes mildly humorously)
to the South Island, which, despite its much
smaller population, is the larger of the two
main islands of New Zealand.
mucky - informal A term used for making a
mess, or some something that can be messy,
just for Thomo
munted - Badly damaged, unusable or
wrecked.
pottle — in some areas, the unit by which
139
strawberries and certain other fruit are sold. In
other parts of New Zealand, the terms "chip"
and "punnet", shared with UK English, are
better known.
Queen Street farmer — informal humorous a
usually pejorative term for an investor in rural
land with no knowledge of land use.
rej - pronounced "reedge". Abbr. of "reject",
a schoolyard insult.
Remuera tractor/Fendalton tractor — slang
humorous, a usually pejorative term for an
SUV (known as a "four wheel drive" locally)
(compare Queen Street farmer, above).
Rogernomics - a political term applied to so-
called 'economic reforms' of the 1980s, and
continuing worldwide today. These involved
turning public assets and property over to
private interest; selling government land and
companies for short-term, one-off profit.
Named in honour of its spearheading MP, Sir
Roger Douglas.
scarfie — slang, a university student,
particularly one studying at the University of
Otago.
shot - slang said instead of thanks or cheers,
commonly as "Shot bro" or "Shot g"
140
 tin - slang Corrugated roofing iron, an icon
of New Zealand architecture and widely used
in old and new houses.
tinny (also spelled 'tinnie') -1. slang a tinfoil
wrap containing marijuana, sold at a "tinny
house". 2. older meaning 'lucky', as in 'tinny
bastard', or 'tin-arse'. 3. slang, a can of beer. 4.
slang a small aluminium-hulled boat, usually
un powered.
too much - Good, Great, very pleased
Twink - used to erase or cover a writing
mistake in pen. Elsewhere known as White-out.
up the Puhoi — slang far from civilisation.
The Puhoi is a river just north of Auckland.
Over the years the phrase has evolved and is
now often heard as "Up the Boohai". It is also
sometimes attributed to other New Zealand
rivers. Again, more characteristic of the older
generation.
waka — slang term for any kind of vehicle
or means of transport, from the Maori term
waka used for a canoe or watercraft.
Westie — a derogatory term which refers to
an inhabitant of West Auckland, usually
Caucasian. It is also used by people from West
Auckland instead of "Bogan" for people who
141
may not even reside there. Has some similar
sentiment to the term "white-trash" which is
common in the U.S. Westies may be identified
by their affinity for black clothing, (including
tight jeans), Heavy Metal music, 'muscle cars'
and aggressive dog breeds. Their women,
children and pets are often just as tough as the
men.
During the 19th century, New Zealand
English gained many loanwords from the
Maori language, mainly the names of birds,
plants, fishes and places, but the flow stopped
abruptly around the beginning of the 20th
century. From the last quarter of the 20th
century onwards this flow resumed, this time
with a focus on cultural concepts. The use of
Maori words is increasing, particularly in the
North Island
"Kia ora" (literally "be healthy") is a Maori
term of greeting, meaning "hello" or
"welcome". It can also mean "thank you", or
signify agreement with a speaker at a meeting.
The Maori greetings "tena koe" (to one
person), "tena korua" (to two people) or "tena
koutou" (to three or more people) are also
widely used, as are farewells such as "haere
142
ra".
The Maori phrase kia kaha, "be strong", is
frequently encountered as an indication of
moral support for someone starting a stressful
undertaking or otherwise in a difficult situation.
Although previously in common usage it
became an iconic phrase of support following
the 2010 Canterbury earthquake.
Some hybrid words, part English and part
Maori, have developed, the most common of
which is probably half-pai— often written half-
pie — meaning incomplete or substandard
quality, pai being the Maori word for "good".
(The portmanteau form half-pied is also used,
derived from half-baked). Similarly, the Maori
word ending -tanga, which has a similar
meaning to the English ending -ness, is
occasionally used in hybrid terms such as
kiwitanga (that is, the state of being a New
Zealander).
Several Maori words are used in English as
lighthearted, or even slang, equivalents,of their
more common English counterparts. The term
puku for stomach, for example, is more likely
to be encountered during a friendly chat than in
more formal circumstances, with one of its uses
143
being a euphemism for a large belly.
Many Maori words or phrases that describe
Maori culture have become part of New
Zealand English and may be used in general
(non-Maori) contexts. Some of these are:
Aotearoa: New Zealand. Popularly
interpreted to mean 'land of the long white
cloud1, but the original derivation is uncertain
aroha: Love, sympathy, affection
haere mai: welcome
haka: a chant and dance of challenge (not
always a war dance), popularised by the All
Blacks rugby union team, who perform a haka
before the game in front of the opposition
hangi a method of cooking food in a pit; or
the occasion at which food is cooked this way.
hongi: traditional Maori greeting featuring
the pressing together of noses
hui: a meeting; increasingly being used by
New Zealand media to describe business
meetings relating to Maori affairs
iwi: tribe, or people
kapai: very pleasant; good, fine. From Maori
'ka pai
kaupapa: policy or principle
kia ora: hello, and indicating agreement
144
with a speaker (literally 'be healthy)
koha: donation, contribution
kohanga reo: Maori language preschool
(literally 'language nest')
korero: to talk; to speak Maori; story
Kura Kaupapa Maori. Maori language
school
mana influence, reputation — a combination
of authority, integrity, power and prestige
Maoritanga: Maori culture, traditions, and
way of life. Lit. Maoriness.
marae: ceremonial meeting area in front of
the meeting house; or the entire complex
surrounding this, including eating and sleeping
areas
Pakeha: people of non-Maori origin,
especially those of European origin
piripiri: clinging seed, origin of New
Zealand English 'biddy-bid'.
powhiri ceremony of welcome
puku: belly, usually a big one
tanqata whenua: native people of a country
or region, i.e. the Maori in New Zealand
(literally 'people of the land‘)
tapu: sacred, taboo; to be avoided because of
this; (a cognate of the Tongan tabu.
145
 tanqi: to mourn; or, a funeral at a marae
taniwha: mythical water monster
te reo: the Maori language (literally, 'the
language')
waka: canoe, boat (modern Maori usage
includes automobiles)
whanau: extended family or community of
related families
whare: house, building
rohe: home territory of a specific iwi taihoa
- not yet, wait a while tamariki: children
tohunga: priest (in Maori use, an expert or
highly skilled person)
turangawaewae: one's own turf, "a place to
stand"
tutu: to be rebellious, stirred up,
mischievous used in New Zealand English to
mean "fidget" or "fiddle" e.g. "Don't tutu with
that!"
urupa burial ground
utu: revenge (in Maori, payment, response,
answer)
wahi tapu: sacred site
whaikorero: oratory
whakapapa: genealogy
waiata: song
146
 wairua: spirit

I. Find out the Australian and New

Zealandian words for the following
definitions
1. A person who works hard to make a
decent living in difficult circumstances;
2. A person who expects others to do all the
work;
3. An act of fraud or sharp practice;
4. To go shopping.
5. A convenience store in larger cities in
New Zealand.
6. A person who is perceived to be
uncultured.
7. To pul someone’s leg;
8. Any various sweets;
9. A period of time spent smoking
marijuana;
10. A small holiday home, usually near the
beach.

II. Define the meanings of the following

phraseological units and slangs
1. As bald as a bandicot.
2. Flat out like a lizard drinking.
147
 3. Crook.
4. Good as gold.
5. Up the duff.
6. Freezing works.
7. Queen street farmer.
8. Remuera tractor.
9. Up the Puhoi.
10. Little Aussie battler.

III. Give explanation to the following

words and expressions used in Australian
or New Zealandian English

To do the messages; bogan; bludger; fair

dinkum; didgeridoo; milk bar; shack, ice block;
fairy floss; jersey; kai; chippies; flat; chunder;
kiwi;; pom; smoko; boondocks; wag; dak;
choice!; bach; dak; dag/dagg; aroha.

148
 4. Renaissance and the English language

The English Renaissance was a cultural and

artistic movement in England dating from the
late 15th and early 16th centuries to the early
17th century. It is associated with the pan-
European Renaissance that is usually regarded
as beginning in Italy in the late 14th century.
Like most of northern Europe, England saw
little of these developments until more than a
century later. The beginning of the English
Renaissance is often taken, as a convenience, to
be 1485, when the Battle of Bosworth Field
ended the Wars of the Roses and inaugurated
the Tudor Dynasty. Renaissance style and
ideas, however, were slow in penetrating
England, and the Elizabethan era in the second
half of the 16th century is usually regarded as
the height of the English Renaissance.
List of Words and Phrases Shakespeare
Invented
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was not
only a prolific writer, he is said to have
introduced thousands of words and phrases into
the English language. However, it is commonly
149
suggested that Shakespeare might not have
invented certain words and phrases, but rather
his works are the first time the words were
actually written down. The argument by many
scholars is that words and phrases attributed to
Shakespeare were probably spoken first. This
does not discount the fact, however, that
Shakespeare was a master of the English
language, demonstrating great wit.
Here are some common words that first
appeared in Shakespeare's plays and their
meanings:
Auspicious - favorable; promising success; a
good omen. A wedding is an example of an
auspicious occasion.
Baseless - without a foundation; not based
on fact. If you accuse someone of wrongdoing,
make sure that you have support to back up
your claim and it is not a baseless accusation.
Barefaced - shameless; without concealment
or disguise. When someone tells a 'barefaced
lie' it is not a very good one and you
immediately know it is not true.
Castigate - to punish harshly. Sometimes
celebrities and politicians are castigated in the
press more harshly than ordinary citizens.
150
 Clangor - a loud (clanging) sound. Ghosts
are sometimes said to be followed by the loud
clangor of chains.
Dexterously - skillful, especially in the use
of one's hands (or also one's mind). A good
carpenter can dexterously build a bookshelf
very easily.
Dwindle - to get smaller; diminish. Often
used to describe money. Many people's savings
dwindle after losing a job.
Multitudinous - a lot; a great number. You
are in luck if you can say that you have a
multitudinous amount of friends.
Sanctimonious - pretending to be very
religious or righteous. Sometimes people who
judge others harshly are sanctimonious.
Watchdog - a person or group that keeps
close watch to discover wrong or illegal
activity. A popular watchdog group is PETA,
which exposes wrongful actions against
animals.
A countenance more in sorrow than in
anger - a person or thing that is viewed more
with sadness than with anger.
From Shakespeare's Hamlet, 1602. Horatio
describes to Hamlet the appearance of his
151
father's ghost:
Hamlet: What, look'd he frowningly?
Horatio: A countenance more in sorrow than
in anger.
A fool's paradise. A state of happiness
based on false hope.
This is an early phrase, first recorded in the
Paston Letters, 1462:
"I would not be in a folis
paradyce."Shakespeare later used it in Romeo
and Juliet, 1592,
Nurse:
Now, afore God, I am so vexed, that every
part about me quivers. Scurvy knave! Pray you,
sir, a word: and as I told you, my young lady
bade me inquire you out; what she bade me
say, I will keep to myself: but first let me tell
ye, if ye should lead her into a fool's paradise,
as they say, it were a very gross kind of
behavior, as they say: for the gentlewoman
Beware the Ides of March
From Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, 1601.
'Beware the ides of March' is the soothsayer's
message to Julius Caesar, warning of his death.
The Ides of March didn't signify anything
special in itself - this was just the usual way of
152
saying "March 15th". The notion of the Ides
being a dangerous date was purely an invention
of Shakespeare's; each month has an Ides
(often the 15th) and this date wasn't significant
in being associated with death prior to 1601.
A foregone conclusion. A decision made
before the evidence for it is known. An
inevitable conclusion.
From Shakespeare's Othello, 1604:
OTHELLO:
But this denoted a foregone conclusion:
‘Tis a shrewd doubt, though it be but a
dream..
Good men and true - Dependable men
of rank and honour. The phrase was adapted
later to 'twelve good men and true', indicating
the twelve (originally all men, now both sexes)
of a criminal jury.
From Shakespeare's Much Ado About
Nothing, 1599:
DOGBERRY: Are you good men and true?
VERGES: Yea, or else it were pity but they
should suffer salvation, body and soul.
Friends. Romans. Countrymen, lend
me your ears
This quotation from Julius Caesar is one of
153
Shakespeare's best-known lines. Mark Antony
delivers a eulogy in honour of the recently
murdered Julius Caesar:
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your
ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them; The good
is oft interred with their bones; So let it be with
Caesar.
Caesar had been assassinated by a group of
conspirators led by Brutus. Brutus had
previously delivered a speech in which he
claimed that the murder had been done in the
name of freedom. In a clever speech, Antony
turned the mob against Brutus and the other
assassins.
A sorry sight
A regrettable and unwelcome aspect or
feature. Now also used to mean something or
someone of untidy appearance.
From Shakespeare's Macbeth, 1605:
MACBETH:
Hark! Who lies in the second chamber?
LADY MACBETH:
Donalbain.
MACBETH:
This is a sorry sight.
154
 [Looking on his hands]
LADY MACBETH:
A foolish thought, to say a sorry sight.
A sea change
A radical change or transformation.
From Shakespeare's The Tempest, 1610:
ARIEL [sings]:
Full fathom five thy father lies; Of his bones
are coral made; Those are pearls that were his
eyes: Nothing of him that doth fade
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange.
Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell
A plague on both your houses. A
frustrated curse on both sides of an argument.
From Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, 1592:
MERCUTIO:
I am hurt.
A plague o' both your houses! I am sped.
Is he gone, and hath nothing?
The houses are those of the feuding
Montague and Capulet families.
Foul play
Dishonest or treacherous behaviour; also
violent conduct.
'Foul play' is a 16th century idiom.
155
Nowadays we often use this phrase in regard to
'fouls' that are committed in sports, i.e. actions
which are outside the particular sports' rules.
This is itself quite an old usage.
These were preceded by Shakespeare's use,
and probably his coinage, of the phrase in a
non-sporting context, simply to mean 'unfair
behaviour'; for example, Love's Labours Lost,
1588:
BIRON:
Honest plain words best pierce the ear of
grief;
And by these badges understand the king.
For your fair sakes have we neglected time,
Play'd foul play with our oaths.
Wild goose chase. A hopeless quest.
This phrase is old and appears to be one of
the many phrases introduced to the language by
Shakespeare, The first recorded citation is from
Romeo and Juliet, 1592:
Romeo: Switch and spurs, switch and spurs;
or I'll cry a match.
Mercutio: Nay, if thy wits run the wild-
goose chase, I have done, for thou hast more of
the wild-goose in one of thy wits than, I am
sure, I have in my whole five.
156
 More fool you
Said in reply to someone who has reported
doing something that is considered to be
obviously foolish.
From Shakespeare's The Taming of the
Shrew, 1596:
BIANCA: The more fool you, for laying on
my duty.
Pound of flesh. Something which is owed
that is ruthlessly required to be paid back.
This of course derives from Shakespeare's
Merchant of Venice, 1596. The insistence by
Shylock of the payment of Antonio's flesh is
the central plot device of the play:
SHYLOCK:
The pound of flesh which I demand of him
Is deerely bought, 'tis mine,
and I will haue it.
The figurative use of the phrase to refer to
any lawful but nevertheless unreasonable
recompense dates to the late 18th century.
Star-crossed lovers
Star-crossed means unlucky, i.e. not
favoured by the stars.
The phrase originates from Shakespeare's
Romeo and Juliet, 1592:
157
 A paire of starre-crost louers, take their life.
The Queen's English. The language of
the United Kingdom.
Shakespeare used the phrase in The Merry
Wives of Windsor, 1600, but it was in common
use before that. The King's English' is used
when the United Kingdom has a king
Night owl
A person who is active late at night.
'Nightowl' was originally just a synonym for
'owl' and has been used as such since at least
1581, when Bell and Foxe included it it their
translated work Against Jerome Osorius..
The figurative use of the term, i.e. as a
reference to people rather than owls, also began
in the 16th century. Shakespeare used it in
1594 in the narrative poem The Rape of
Lucrece:
The dove sleeps fast that this night-owl will
catch:
Thus treason works ere traitors be espied.
Vanish into thin air Disappear without
trace. Shakespeare came close to this phrase in
Othello, 1604:
Clown:
Then put up your pipes in your bag, for I'll
158
away. Go; vanish into air;
away!
A charmed life
A life of guaranteed good fortune or
invulnerability, by virtue of a charm or spell.
From Shakespeare's Macbeth, 1605.
MACBETH
I bear a charmed life, which must not yield,
To one of woman born.
Wear your heart on your sleeve
Display one's emotions openly, not to try to
hide your feelings.
This phrase may derive from the custom at
middle ages jousting matches. Knights are said
to have worn the colours of the lady they were
supporting, in cloths or ribbons tied to their
arms.The term doesn't date from that period
though and is first recorded in Shakespeare's
Othello, 1604. In the play, the treacherous
lago's plan was to feign openness and
vulnerability in order to appear faithful:
lago:
It is sure as you are Roderigo,
Were I the Moor, I would not be lago:
In following him, I follow but myself;
Heaven is my judge, not I for love and duty,
159
 But seeming so, for my peculiar end:
For when my outward action doth
demonstrate
The native act and figure of my heart
In compliment extern, 'tis not long after
But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve
For daws to peck at: I am not what I am.
The game is afoot
The process is in active existence; for
example, The teams are on the pitch - the
whistle blows - the game is afoot.'
From Shakespeare's King Henry IV Part I,
1597:
"Before the game is afoot, thou still let'st
slip."
As good luck would have it. By fortunate
chance. From Shakespeare's The Merry Wives
of Windsor, 1600.
Here are some other phrases that
Shakespeare is said to have invented, which are
commonly used today.
"It's Greek to me" (Julius Caesar) - When
you say, "it's Greek to me" you are admitting
that you do not know or understand
something.
"Fair play" (The Tempest) - Follow the
160
rules, especially in competitions or sports.
"All that glitters isn't gold" (Merchant of
Venice) - We usually use this phrase after we
discover the fact that something that looks
good turns out not to be that great.
"Break the ice" (The Taming of the Shrew) -
Often when you meet someone for the first
time, you "break the ice" by asking them polite
questions about themselves.
"Clothes make the man" (Hamlet) -
Although not always true, this phrase implies
that how a person dresses tells you something
about who they are as a person.
"A laughing stock" (The Merry Wives of
Windsor) - To be a laughing stock is to be
considered a joke by many people.

King James Bible's influence on the

Engllish
language

The King James Bible's affect on the English

language is still being felt 400 years after it was
first published. No other book has had a greater
impact on the way English is spoken and
written than the King James Bible. Its phrases
161
have infiltrated the everyday language of
English speakers. Most probably don't even
know that they are quoting the Bible. Some of
the phrases from the holy text that are often
used today include:
"Gave up the ghost"
"Take root"
"Out of the mouth of babes"
"A fly in the ointment"
"No peace for the wicked"
"Put words in thy mouth"
"Feet of clay"
"Wheels within wheels"
"Salt of the earth"
"The blind leading the blind"
"Turned the world upside down"
"God forbid"
"The powers that be"
"Filthy lucre"
"Fought the good fight"
There are a few good reasons why
expressions from the King James Bible would
pervade English. Beginning with its publication
in 1611, it was once daily reading for millions
of people throughout the English speaking
world. It was extensively read aloud in
162
churches. Over time, readers and listeners
absorbed its language and repeated it in
communication and writings. Influential
people, particularly in London, amplified the
effect for centuries to come.
The King James Bible clearly has had a huge
influence on the English language. But, warns
Crystal, only a very tiny number of the
expressions are unique to the King James
Bible. The vast majority come from other
Bibles from the 16th century. The turns of
phrase in those other Bibles were simply
siphoned through the King James Bible. But
that's not because the translators of the King
James Bible were lazy. They were instructed
by the king to be conservative, to use the other
Bibles where possible. And only after they
found those translations wanting, should they
do their own thing. So, truly, the King James
Bible popularized the expressions that were
already in biblical use. The King James version
was appointed to be read in all churches, so
"people started not just to quote these
expressions, but to play with them — 'What
hath Google wrought, indeed."But, says
Crystal, some parts of the Bible are too sacred
163
for adaptation into general idiomatic usage.
"As soon as you get to very important parts of
the Bible, such as the words of Jesus just
before his crucifixion," or his words on the
cross, the translations are so momentous and
emotional, that Crystal predicts it's most
unlikely they'll come up in conversation.
The influence of the King James Bible on
English culture, language, life, and morals is
truly without equal. Its impact is beyond
estimation. The King James Bible has been the
dominant expression of God's Word for the
English-speaking world for most of four
centuries as it has guided millions of people
through life on earth and to life beyond the
grave.
The literary influence of the King James
Version is well known. Not even Shakespeare
has more profoundly affected our literature.
The most godless of men, provided only that he
has inherited English for his mother tongue, is
confronted with the influence of the King
James Version of the Bible almost wherever he
turns. It has been injected into the stream of the
language. It has invigorated and enriched all
subsequent English prose.
164
 The King James Bible and the works of
famous Londoner William Shakespeare entered
the scene at a formative stage of English's
development. The imprints of both are evident
on the language. The Bible introduced 257
phrases, while Shakespeare coined about 100.
In contrast, Shakespeare invented about 1,000
new words, including "frugal" and "generous,"
while the English Bible introduced only 40 or
so, like "backsliding" and "battering ram".
The Authorized King James Version is an
English translation by the Church of England.
Its creation was conceived by King James I in
response to the perceived problems of the
earlier translations. Completed in 1611, it was
the third such official translation into English.
The King James version of the Bible is
widely recognized to be a "Mount Everest" of
English language, literature, culture, and
spirituality with respect to its significance and
influence.
The King James Bible, though indeed the
greatest literary monument of the English-
speaking world, has never been merely a
literature. It has guided through the path of life
and the valley of death a billion hearts and
165
minds that it has taught, consoled, and
enlightened. "The greatest of all translations is
the English Bible. It is even more than that: It
is the greatest English book, the first of the
English classics, the source of the greatest
influences upon English Character and speech.
It is in a singular degree, the voice of a people."
- George Sampson. It is needless to say that the
influence of the Bible on English literature has
been immensely great and most valuable. Ever
since the publication of the first translation of
the Bible by Wycliffe to the publication of the
Authorized Version in 1611, its influence on
English literature and language has been
constant and steady. These productions exerted
great influence in the development of standard
prose relinquishing the crude style of the
liturgical treatises. The influence of the Bible
was immensely felt in other branches of
literature especially in poetry.
The Authorized Version of the Bible was
published in 1611. It was the work of forty-
seven scholars nominated by James I, over
whom Bishop Lancelot Andrews presided. It is
very difficult to distinguish the influence of
Authorized Bible from that of the earlier forms
166
yet it found a righteous conclusion of religions
controversies started in 1523 in England.
Humanism, the product of the Renaissance
and the religions Reformation came into
conflict during the mid!6th century England.
The greatest advantage of this was that they
largely contributed to the development of
English prose. The controversialists wanted to
reach the public and win over their sympathies.
For that purpose they had to write their
pamphlets and treatise in simple English so that
it could easily be understood by the common
people. That is how the translation of the Bible
into English raised the controversies and how
these controversies helped in the development
of English prose. Let us now study the Biblical
influence upon the modern English as it stands
now.
Proverbs & phrases: Many proverbs and
phrases, which are in common use in modern
English, are the gifts of the Bible. Quotations
from the Bible are given profusely. English
language has been enriched by the Bible so
much that a proper assessment is practically
impossible. Some illustrations of Biblical
phrases are given below: 'arose as one man',
167
'broken reed', 'a law unto themselves', 'the man
of sin', 'moth and rust', 'clear as crystal', 'the
eleventh hour', 'city of refuse', 'whited
sepulcher', 'wash one's hands off and many
other familiar scriptural phrases and allusions.
From Tyndale we owe 'long-suffering',
'peacemaker', 'stumbling block', 'the fatted calf,
'filthy lucre', 'mercy seat', 'day spring' and
'scapegoat'. From Coverdale we have 'tender
mercy', 'loving-kindness', 'valley of the shadow
of death', 'avenges of blood' etc. Many such
Biblical phrases and idioms are current in
modern English without even knowing its
source.
Poetry: Right from Chaucer to the present
day the influence of the Bible is clearly
discernible in poetry. Even Chaucer drew the
material for some of his tales from the Bible.
Spenser's Fairy Queen is also "steeped in the
humanism of the classics and Italian literature
and it everywhere testifies to the strenuous
idealism and moral earnestness of
Protestantism". Milton's Paradise Lost is
Biblical while the metaphysical poets were
interested in Biblical allusion. In the twentieth
century the poetry of T.S.Eliot, Yeats, and
168
Dylan Thomas is full of the Biblical references.
Technically the Biblical influence can be seen
in the use of 'th' such as in hath, 'loveth',
'hateth', 'giveth' etc in place of 'has', 'haves',
'gives' etc as a poetical style. Again, we find
old past tenses in 'gat', 'clave', 'brake' instead of
got, clove, broke in poetry mastered by
Tennyson, Morris, Coleridge etc. Instead of
using 's' ending in verbs we have: "He prayeth
best who loveth best/All things both great and
small"- Ancient Mariners.
Superlatives, Scriptural Proper Names: On
the analogy of the scriptural 'holy of holies'
which contains a Hebrew manner of expressing
the superlatives, we get in modern English
similar phrases such as: In my heart of hearts,
the place of all places, a friend of friends, the
pearl of pearls, a prince of princes etc.
Further scriptural proper names are often
used as appellatives to designate types of
character. As for example, 'to raise Cain'
meaning to make a determined angry fuss;
'David and Jonathan' means 'any pair of
devoted friends'.
Revival of Some Archaic Words: Biblical
usage has revived some of the lost words into
169
full life. Such words are like 'damsel' for young
women, 'raiment and apparel' for dress,
'firmament', a poetical synonym for sky'.
The modern world has seen many changes;
but it has, so far, seen no movement that has
shaken the supremacy of the greatest of English
books The Bible'. If ever the Bible falls from
its high sovereignty, we may be sure that the
English character has fallen with it.
The King James Version of the Bible has
been enormously influential in the development
of the English language. It ranks with the
complete works of Shakespeare and the Oxford
English Dictionary as one of the cornerstones
of the recorded language. After Shakespeare,
the King James, or Authorized, Version of the
Bible is the most common source of phrases in
English.A few of these phrases are listed
below:
"A law unto themselves", "A house divided",
"A man after his own heart", "Apple of my
eye", "At my wit's end", "Blind leading the
blind", "By the skin of our teeth", "Can a
leopard change his spots?", "Don't cast your
pearls before swine", "Drop in the bucket",
"Dust of the earth", "Eat, drink, and be merry",
170
"Eye for an eye", "False prophets, which come
to you in sheep's clothing", "Fell on rocky
ground", "Fight the good faith","Golden calf",
"Good Samaritan", "Hammer swords into
plowshares","He gave up the ghost", "He that
is without sin among you, let him cast the first
stone", "Handwriting on the wall", "How are
the mighty fallen" "Labor of love", "Many are
called, but few are chosen", "Man shall not live
by bread alone" "More blessed to give than to
receive", "My brother's keeper", "No peace for
the wicked", "Out of the mouths of babies",
"Pride goes before a fall", "Put your house in
order", "Red sky at morning", "Salt of the
earth", "Signs of the times", "Soft answer turns
away wrath", "Stood by the stuff", "Strait and
narrow", "Suffer fools gladly", "Sweat of your
brow", "The blind leading the blind", "The love
of money is the root of all evil", "The truth
shall make you free", "There's nothing new
under the sun", "Thorn in the flesh", "To
everything there is a season", "Twinkling of an
eye", "Wars and rumors of wars","Weighed in
the balances and found wanting", "What is
truth?", "Where there is no vision, the people
perish".
171
 The Renaissance had a profound influence
on the course of the development of modern
American language, culture, and, since it is a
natural extension of both, artistic expression.
The Renaissance influence in America brought
about a new focus on humanism and as a result,
a subsequent turning away from the dominant
ideals put forth by the church. Although
religion was still of the greatest influence
throughout the period of the Renaissance, the
dawning recognition of human potential and
scientific inquiry shaped the course of Western
history and does still influence contemporary
American culture today. Principles of realism,
particularly as they appeared in terms of art and
literature have remained vital in all aspects of
American society and figures such as
Boccaccio, da Vinci, Machiavelli, and others
live on and influence the way we view our
world today.
Before the Renaissance, writers generally
tended to focus on issues of a religious nature.
Countless texts instructed readers about how to
live a pious life and discussed Christian heroes.
The Renaissance brought about influence to
new writers who sought to break with this
172
tradition and present a more realistic version of
life. Several authors from the Renaissance
period had a significant effect on contemporary
American society, especially in terms of either
literary style and meaning as well as political
thought. By introducing a new realism, they
allowed the common person to enjoy tales and
this tradition has continued in today's society.
In American language, science remains at
the forefront of all of our lives, both in terms of
how our culture and our society functions. We
take for granted that science is a process based
on careful experimentation and observation
before a conclusion is reached. The writer and
philosopher Francis Bacon had a profound
impact on contemporary American thought and
his ideas would be called back as soon as the
Enlightenment period in American history. He
is recognized as one of the leaders of the
scientific revolution and pioneered the idea of
performing experiments to land at a conclusion
or hypothesis. One of Bacon's statements,
"knowledge is power" is still a popular saying
today and it has become the basis for much of
our society, especially in age of information
and technology. Bacon is also an important
173
figure to contemporary American society
because he set forth a clear division between
philosophy and religion. Before Bacon, the two
were considered inseparable, but by using his
powers of deductive reasoning and observation,
Bacon showed how they were two different
things altogether. This concept has certainly
carried over to American society and can even
be found in our constitution to some degree.
We have always made the division between
church and state important and this idea in part
goes back to the time of Francis Bacon. In
other words, the thoughts of a Renaissance
philosopher and writer have gone on to
influence large political structures and
doctrines.
With their emphasis on Renaissance
humanism and a new, more balanced approach
to handling religion, Renaissance artists and
writers have shaped the course of Western and
American history and thought. Men such as da
Vinci taught us about the value of combining
science and art and writers such as Francis
Bacon taught us how knowledge and modes of
inquiry are essential to our being. Without
these and other key Renaissance figures, one
174
can only imagine what kind of a world we
might live in. It even be reasonable to assume it
would be a theocracy in which all art was of a
religious nature and all thinkers limited to a
narrow scope of subjects. Instead, we have the
freedom to think, experiment, and observe as
well as to read and consider art as a reflection
of reality, not necessarily anything

I. Define the words invented by

W.Shakespeare respective to the following
definitions

To diminish; promising succes; person

without concealment or disguise; a great
number; without a foundation;

II. Match the phrases coined by

W.Shakespeare with their definitions:

1. A fool’s paradiseA decision made

before the evidence it
is known
2. A foregone A frustrated case on
conclusion both sides of an
arqument
175
3. Good men are true Disappear without
trace
4. A plague on both A person who is active
your houses late at night
5. Star-crossed A life of guaranted
lovers good fortune
6. Night owl A state of happiness
based on false hope
7. Vanish into thin Dependable men of
air rank and honour
8. A charmed life Display one’s emotions
openly, not to try to
hide your feelings.
9. Where your heart Unlucky, not favoured
on your sleeve by stars
10. The game is Something that looks
afoot good turns out not to
be that great
11. It’s Greek o me Following the rules in
competition or sports
12. All that glitters Not understanding
isn’t gold something
13. Fair play The process is in active
existence

176
 III. Give definitions to the following
phrases coined by King James Bible

Eat, drink, and be merry; Fight a good faith;

He gave up the ghost; Many are called, but few
are chosen; No pease for the wicked; Pride
goes before a fall; Soft answer turns away
wrath; Suffer fools gladly; The blind leading
the blind; The love of money is the root of all
evil; There is nothing new under the sun;
Where there is no vision, the people perish.

177
 6. Mythology and superstitions
Mythology

Форматион анд енриъщмент оф

тще Енэлисщ лехиъон щас жуст
беен инфлуенъед бй манй фаъторс
– соcио-ъултурал лифе, релиэион,
еъономиъ анд политиъал
девеломпент, мйтщолоэй, етъ.
Мйтщолоэй щас беен оне оф тще
риъщест соуръес oф аппеаранъе
оф лехиъал ехпрессиве меанс,
енриъщинэ тще Енэлисщ
воъабуларй. Ъоннеътион оф суъщ
wордс wитщ анъиент анд wелл-
кноwн мйтщолоэиъал персонаэес
анд евентс эреатлй инъреасеs тще
стйлистиъ ъолоур анд
ехпрессивенесс оф тще релатед
wордс анд ехпрессионс макинэ
тще спееъщ лаъониъ. Фор
инстанъе, тще ехпрессион оливе
бранъщ усед ин тще пщрасе щолд
оут ан оливе бранъщ («то маке а
сиэн оф пеаъе») ис а щиэщлй

178
ехпрессиве анд емотиве device
денотинэ «а сиэн оф пеаъе». Iт ис
аsсоъиатед wитщ тще
мйтщолоэиъал анъиенъй: Ын тще
сторй оф тще флоод ин тще Олд
Тестамент оф тще Библе, Ноащ лет
а дове флй фрее фром тще арк,
анд ит ретурнед wитщ а смалл
бранъщ фром ан оливе трее. Тщис
сщоwед тщат тще флоод wас
беэининэ то дисаппеар анд тщат
Эоd wас но лонэер анэрй wитщ тще
пеопле он the Еартщ. Тще оливе
бранъщ тщерофоре репресентс
тще ретурн оф пеаъе бетwеен Эод
анд тще щуман раъе, анд довес
аре сометимес сщоwн щолдинэ ан
оливе брaнъщ ин тщеир беакс ас а
сиэн оф пеаъе1.
Тще Енэлисщ лехиъон ис риъщ
ин нумероус щиэщлй ехпрессиве
ехпрессионс ассоъиатед wитщ
мйтщолоэй. Мйтщолоэй щас эивен
рисе тще емотивенесс,
1
Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture. Addison Wesley
Longman Limited, 1998, p.945

179
стйлистиъаллй ъолоуред лехиъал
девиъес ин тще Енэлисщ ланэуаэе.
Тще Енэлисщ ланэуаэе ис риъщ
ин мйтщолоэиъал реалитиес
фунътионинэ ас ехпрессиве меанс
анд стйлистиъ девиъес.
Тще верб эорэонизе, фор
инстанъе, ис ассоъиатед wитщ
тще Эорэонс, тще мйтщолоэиъал
тщрее систерс белиевед то щаве
снaкес фор щаир анд а эазе со
террифйинэ тщат а мортал wщо
лоокед инто тщеир ейес wас
турнед то стоне. Медуса, тще мост
фамоус оф тще тщрее, wас
бещеадед бй Персеус.
Тще щеад оф тще эорэон wас
офтен депиътед ин тще Gреек арт
ин а щиэщлй стйлизед манnер. Ат
пресент а эорэон ъан меан а
террiфйинэ ор уэлй wоман.
Аъъординэлй, тще верб эорэонизе
меанс то парaлйзе бй феар, тщат
ис а сйнонйм оф вербс то террифй
ор щоррифй. Бут тще верб

180
эорэонизе щавинэ а мйтщолоэиъал
ъолоур, денотes а стронэест деэреe
оф феар.
Тще ехпrессион «то щаве тще
эолден тоуъщ ор Мидас’ тоуъщ» ис
ассоъиатед wитщ тще
мйтщолоэиъал мусиъал ъонтест
бетwеен Апoллo анд Пан. Wщен
Аполло wас жудэед виъториоус бй
тще моунтаин-эод Тмолус, Мидас,
тще кинэ оф Пщрйэиа, дисаэреед.
Фор tщис лаък оф перъептион
Аполло трансформед Мидас’
оффендинэ еарс инто тщосе оф ан
асс. То щаве асс’с еарс меанс тщат
оне лаъкс труе мусиъал
жудэемент анд тасте.
Он анотщер оъъасион, тще эод
Дионйсус эрантед Mидас’ wисщ
тщат wщатевер ще миэщт тоуъщ
бе турнед инто эолд. То щис
деспаир, Мидас фоунд тщат евен
ас ще пут фоод анд дринк то щис
моутщ ит wас трансмиттед инто
эолд. Дионйсус эрантед щим

181
релиеф бй теллинэ щим то батще
ин тще ривер Паътолус, wщосе бед
беъоме эолден. Тщус, то щаве тще
эолден тоуъщ ор Мидас тоуъщ
меанс то бе суъъессфул ин анй
ендеавор.
Фром тще мйтщолоэиъал Летще
(тще ривер оф «форэетфулнесс»
ин тще ундерwоrлд) щаве деривед
some colourful expressions. Летще
денотес тодай а стате оф обливион
ор форэетфулнесс. Ытс
деривативес летщарэй анд
летщарэиъ деноте а стате оф
персистент дроwсинесс ор
слуээисщнесс. Летщеан
ъщараътеризес анйтщинэ тщат
ъаусес форэетфулнесс оф тще
паст. Натураллй, тщесе
мйтщолоэй-басед ъоинаэес hаве
стйлистиъ ъолоур анд денотес тще
стате оф форэетфулнесс море
емотионаллй.
Щеръулес (тще Gреек
Щераълес), тще наме оф тще

182
эреатест щерo ин тще анъиент
wорлд щас got метапщориъал
меанинэ оф а тремендоус ехертион
ор спирит оф щероиъ ендуренъе.
То десърибе сомеоне ас
щеръулеан ис то ликен щиm то
Щеръулес ин стренэтщ анд
статуре. Ыт алсо денотес нeeдинэ
ор усинэ верй эреат стренэтщ ор
детерминатион: а щеръулеан таск,
а щеръулеан еффорт1.
Нумероус мйтщолоэиъал wордс
анд ехпрессионс маде тщеир wай
инто тще ланэуаэе афтер
ъщристианитй wас адоптед. Тще
интродуътион оф Ъщристианитй
ъаусеd енриъщмент оф тще
Енэлисщ воъабуларй wитщ
релиэиоус, мйтщолоэиъал
ехпрессионс анд пщрасеолоэиъал
унитс усед ас щиэщлй ехпрессиве
меанс оф дифферент ъонъептионс.
Тще Енэлисщ wорд ентщусиасм,
меанинэ ан ехъитед интерест,
1
Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture, p.621.

183
ориэинатес фром тще Эреек
ентщеос, «филлед wитщ тще эод».
Тще wорд щас эот соме
деривативес ин тще Енэлисщ
ланэуаэе. Щавинэ беен ъонвертед
инто а верб то ентщусе, ит щас
эот тще меанинэ «то спеак wитщ
ор сщоw ентщусиасм»: Сще wас
ентщусинэ абоут а филм сще’д
жуст сеен.
Ыт алсо денотес ъаусинэ то бе
ентщусиастиъ: а эоод теаъщер,
wщо wас алwайс абле то ентщусе
щер студентс.
Ас а ноун ентщусиасм меанс а
стронэ аътиве фeeлинэ оф
интерест анд адмиратион: сще
сщоwс боундлесс ентщусиасм фор
щер wорк; амонэ щис манй
ентщусиасмс ис а эреат фонднесс
фор Еастщерн мусиъ2.
Аджеътивал деривативе оф тщис
wорд – ентщусиастиъ денотес
фулл оф ентщусиасм анд еаэер
2
Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture, p.281.

184
интерест: Сще ис ентщусиастиъ
абоут эоинэ то Франъе; Тще морт
ентщусиастиъ студентс wере алсо
тще мост суъъессфул (2, 281).
Тщус, ентщусиасм,
ентщусиастиъ, ентщусе, серве ас
тще сйнонйм фунътионинэ ас а
щиъщлй ехпрессиве меанс оф тще
котион интерестед wордс
интерестед, тщриллед, кеен, еаэер
зеалоус ардент, десирос, интерест,
ехъитемент, екъитед, тщрилл,
тщриллед етъ.
Etymology is a branch of linguistics in
which the origin of a word can be traced
through its transmission from one language to
another, generally by its cognates in an
ancestral language. While it is widely known
that the Greek and Latin tongues have
contributed many words to the English
language, through etymolgical study it is also
clear that there are hundreds of words in our
vocabulary derived specifically from myths of
gods and heroes. The weaver's tale, found in
both Greek and Roman texts, illustrates just
how a word might come into the English
185
language from ancient mythology.
Greek mythology is one of the most
complex mythologies known in the world. It is
based primarily on personifying concepts to
form stories, often heroic in nature. Many of
these stories are commentaries on moral
virtues, answering questions about the
mysteries of life and death and ultimately
explaining God. As a result, Greek mythology
helped the ancient people grow a culture and
religious rituals.
There are numerous tales that tell of humans
becoming animals, be this change a punishment
by a god or gradual acclimatization to the
situation in which that person is put.
From even before the beginning of the
Greek civilization, which began around the
year 1100 BC, story-telling was a tool of
record-keeping. The Greeks began a form of
story-telling called "mythology". The Greek
myths were often about the Greek gods, heroes,
and mortals, and usually taught a moral lesson,
or helped one remember and recognize the
power of the gods. Greek mythology created
reasons for the occurrence of natural disasters,
the creation of the earth, and sickness and
186
disease. In our present age, Greek mythology is
commonly thought of as primarily a form of
entertainment, like any other story, but during
the time of the Greeks, mythology was
considered sacred, meaningful, and true.
Though Greek mythology is merely considered
a form of entertainment these days, it has
greatly shaped much of what we have achieved
up to this point. Greek mythology has
influenced countless areas including language,
astronomy, astrology, business, medicine,
sexuality, botany, psychology, products,
athletics, weather, and even the Bible. Greek
mythology is both beneficial to us in our
everyday lives, and influential in many ways.
Many words in the English language are
derived from the myths of the Greeks. For
instance, the word "arachnid" is the scientific
name for a spider. This was derived from the
story of Arachne. Arachne was once a beautiful
woman who was an excellent weaver. Because
of her vanity, Arachne challenged an
experienced old woman to a weaving contest.
The old woman tried to correct her technique,
but found no faults. Finally, frustrated with
Arachne's skill, the goddess Athena revealed
187
herself in the old woman and cursed Arachne
to a life devoted only to weaving. Athena
turned Arachne into a spider, doomed to eternal
weaving of webs.
By these many examples, including
psychology, language, etymology, botany,
medicine, astrology, astronomy, and weather,
we can see that Greek mythology and culture
have greatly influenced, changed, and modified
daily life today. All of these areas have been
slightly or drastically influenced by the Greeks
and owe the Greek culture gratitude for its
overwhelming influence. Greek mythology has
intensified diversity in the English language
and in many other areas including botany and
astronomy. We should be very grateful to the
Greeks for their generous donation of words,
phrases, and names to our language and
culture. Because of Greek mythology, the
world has inherited many ways of
nomenclature and other things related to certain
areas of expertise that are relevant in this age.
Borrowing from mythology is especially
notable in names of some plants and animals.
An example is found in the story of
Narcissus, who is such a handsome lad that
188
when he first sees his face mirrored on the
surface of a pond, he pines for his own
reflection. He sits so long at the edge of this
pond that he begins to take root, changing
finally into a flower ~ a narcissus. From this
story we also take the adjective narcissistic,
telling of a person bearing the egotistical
qualities of Narcissus.
Narcissism or extreme self love comes from
the name of the vain god Narcissus. He was the
god who, when he saw his reflection in water,
fell in love with himself.
The Greek goddess of dawn, Eos, also
provides a well-known word, east [ME est, fr.
OE east, L aurora dawn, Gk eos, heos]. The
opposite direction, west [ME, fr. OE, L vesper
evening, Gk hesperos], gets its name from the
Greek god of evening, Hesperus.
Like other extra – linguistic factors,
mythology‘s contribution to enrichment of the
English language with stylistically coloured
words and expressions is great:
Apple of discord
According to a legend, all the gods and
goddesses were invited to the wedding of
Peleus and Thetis, save one, Eris." To avenge
189
this slight, this goddess of discord tossed into
the wedding hall a golden apple with the
inscription "For The Fairest." It was
immediately claimed by three rival goddesses:
Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. Zeus refused to
decide the issue, but instead gave it to Paris, the
son of Priam, king of Troy, to settle. The
Judgment of Paris, as it has come to be known,
bestowed the apple on Aphrodite, who had
promised to Paris, the most beautiful woman in
the world, namely Helen, wife of Menelaus,
king of Sparta. The abduction of Helen by Paris
was the cause of the ten-year siege and
destruction of Troy under the onslaught of the
Greek forces, pledged to wreak vengeance on
the seducer. The apple of discord describes any
action or situation that causes dissension and
turmoil and is more trouble than it is worth.
Arachnid
Arachne was a common girl with a
remarkable skill in weaving. She won such
fame that Athena, slighted and envious,
challenged Arachne to a contest. Athena wove
themes, including the fate of foolish mortals
who dared to vie with the gods. Arachne
depicted the gods' compromising love-affairs.
190
Outraged, Athena struck the girl with her
shuttle and, after Arachne hanged herself, in
remorse transformed Arachne into a spider, so
that she and her species might practice her art
of weaving, forever. An arachnid refers to any
of the various arthropods of the class v
Arachnida, including the spider.
Argus/argus-eyed
According to a legend, one of Zeus' sexual
escapades involved the maiden lo. In an
attempt to keep Hera from discovering the truth
of his dalliance, Zeus transformed lo into a
cow. Hera, not easily thrown off the scent of
her husband's affairs, prevailed upon Zeus to
give her the cow as a present and an assurance
of his good faith, after which Hera enlisted the
aid of Argus, a giant with one hundred eyes, to
keep a close watch over the poor girl. In
English one who is ever-vigilant or watchful
can be called an Argus or be described as
argus-eyed.
Bacchanal/baccanalia/bacchanalian/
bacchant/bacchante/bacchic
Dionysus, the Roman Bacchus, was the god
of wine, frenzied music and dance, and the
irrational. He presided over ecstatic, sometimes
191
orgiastic rites, which involved initiation and
drove the participants into another plane of
perception, as they became possessed by the
deity. He is usually represented in the midst of
a retinue of female worshippers, known as
maenads, bacchae, or bacchantes (the feminine
singular is bacchante; a male follower is a
bacchant, plural bacchants); he is also attended
by male satyrs, mischievous and lecherous
creatures, half-human and half-animal. Wine
proved a powerful conduit to the ineffable,
amidst rituals that included the rending of a
sacrificial victim and the eating of its raw flesh.
Dionysiac rites among the Romans became
known as Bacchanalia and the sometime
extreme behavior of the initiates provoked the
Roman Senate to outlaw them in 186 B.C.
Thus we derive the words bacchanal and
bacchanalia to refer to any debauched party or
celebration. Bacchanal, bacchant, bacchante,
and bacchae can be used to characterize an
overzealous party-goer. The adjectives
bacchanalian and bacchic describe any
exuberant, drunken revelry.
Beware of Greeks bearing gifts/I fear Greeks
even when they bear gifts
192
 The fall of Troy was finally accomplished
by a ruse of the Greeks. They constructed an
enormous, hollow, wooden horse, into which
they hid some of their best fighters. The horse
was left behind as the rest of the Greek host
sailed off to the nearby island of Tenedos and
waited. The treacherous Sinon convinced the
Trojans to drag the gift into the city, despite the
warnings of Laocoon, a priest of Poseidon. In
Vergil's account, Laocoon implored his
countrymen not to bring the treacherous horse
into Troy, crying "I fear Greeks even -when
they bear gifts". Two serpents emerged from
the sea to strangle Laocoon and his two sons.
The Trojans were convinced that they should
accept the horse and thus wrought their own
destruction.
By Jupiter/by Jove/jovian/jovial
Jupiter was the Roman counterpart of Zeus,
the supreme god and father. He was a god of
the sky and his name is derived from Indo-
European roots dyaus/pitr, which literally mean
god/father. In Latin the common oath "by
Jupiter" would be rendered "pro Jove" (Jove
being a different form of his name). In the
Christian tradition there is no religious
193
significance to this exclamation but English
writers, by using it as an expression of surprise
or pleasure, avoided taking God's name in vain;
thus "by Jupiter" or "by Jove" was used to
replace the offensive "By God." To describe
someone or something as jovian means that
one partakes of that awe-inspiring majesty that
is particular to a supreme god. Many
mythological names also found a new existence
in the field of astrology. Since it was felt that
the heavenly bodies influence the life of
humans on earth, celestial bodies were given
appellations drawn from mythology, for
example Jupiter became the name not only of a
god but a planet. Those who were born under
the influence of the planet Jupiter were said to
be of a cheerful disposition, hence the meaning
of the adjective, jovial
Cadmean Victory
Cadmus was informed by the oracle at
Delphi that he would establish a great city.
When he eventually found the site of the future
Thebes, he prepared to sacrifice to the gods in
thanksgiving. He soon discovered that the local
spring from which he needed to draw water for
a proper sacrifice, was guarded by a serpent.
194
He sent his men to dispatch the monster and
bring back the ritual water. All of his men
failed in the attempt and Cadmus eventually
took it upon himself to kill the serpent. Though
Cadmus was ultimately victorious, he now
found himself bereft of his comrades and
dispaired of establishing his realm. A Cadmean
Victory has come to mean a victory won at
great loss to the victor.
Cerberus
Cerberus, the hound of the underworld,
stood guard at the gates of Hades and
prevented those not permitted from entering.
He is usually described as a beast with three
heads and the tail of a dragon. When Aeneas
journied to the lower regions under the
guidance of the Sibyl, he brought along a
medicated cake to drug the animal and insure
their safe passage. To throw a sop to Cerberus
means to give a bribe and thereby ward off an
unpleasant situation.
Chaos/chaotic
Whether Chaos is to be understood as a void
or a primordial, formless, undifferentiated, and
seething mass out of which the order of the
universe is created, it is the starting point of
195
creation. This unformed beginning is
contrasted with later creation, a universe called
the cosmos, a desgination meaning, literally,
harmony or order. The sky and the stars, the
earth and its creatures, and the laws and cycles
which direct and control creation seem to
exhibit the balance, order, and reason which the
mind discerns in the natural world. For us
chaos, together with its adjective chaotic,
simply means a state of confusion.
Chimera/chimerical/chimeric
A wild, hybrid creature, the Chimera had the
head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail
of a serpent and it breathed fire. It was killed
by the Corinthian hero Bellerophon on one of
his journeys. Today a chimera is a fantastic
delusion, an illusory creation of the mind. It
can also refer to a hybrid organism, usually a
plant. Chimerical and Chimeric refer to
something as unreal, imaginary, or fantastic.
These adjectives can also signify that one is
given to fantasy.
Cornucopia
The Latin cornucopia means "horn of
plenty." There are two stories about this horn,
which bestows upon the owner an endless
196
bounty. Zeus, in his secluded infancy on Crete,
was nursed by a goat named Amalthea, which
was also the name of the goddess of plenty.
One of the horns of this goat was broken off
and became the first cornucopia. The horn of
plenty is also associated with Hercules. In
order to win Deianira as his bride, he had to
defeat the horned river-god Achelous. In the
struggle, Hercules broke off one of the horns of
the river-god but, after his victory returned the
horn and received as recompense the horn of
Amalthea. Ovid, however, relates that the horn
of Achelous became a second horn of plenty.
Today the cornucopia is a sign of nature's
abundance, and the word comes to mean a
plenteous bounty.
Cosmos/cosmic/cosmology/cosmetic/
cosmetician
Cosmos refers to the universe, and all that is
ordered and harmonious. The study of
cosmology deals with the origin and structure
of the universe. The adjective, cosmic, may
designate the universe beyond and apart from
the earth itself, or it may in a generalized sense
describe something of vast significance or
implication. Akin to the word cosmos are
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various English words derived from the Greek
adjective cosmeticos. Cosmos not only means
order and harmony, but also arrangement and
decoration; thus cosmetic is a substance which
adorns or decorates the body, and cosmetician,
the person involved with cosmetics.
Cupidity
The Latin word cupidus (desirous or greedy)
gave rise to Cupido, Cupid, the Roman
equivalent of the Greek god of love, Eros. In
early representations he is a handsome youth,
but becomes increasingly younger and
develops his familiar attributes of bow and
arrow (with which he rouses passion both in
gods and mortals) and wings, until he finally
evolves into the Italian putti or decorative
cherubs frequently seen in Renaissance art.
From the same root is derived cupiditas to
denote any intense passion or desire, from
which we derive cupidity (avarice or greed).
See erotic.
Cyclopean
here were two distinct groups of giants
called the Cyclopes, whose name means circle-
eyed and indicates their principle
distinguishing feature, one round eye in the
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center of their forehead. The first, offspring of
Uranus and Ge, were the smiths who labored
with Hephaestus at his forge to create the
thunderbolt for Zeus, among other
masterpieces. The second group of Cyclopes
were a tribe of giants, the most important of
whom is Polyphernus, a son of Poseidon,
encountered by Odysseus. The word cyclopean
refers to anything that pertains to the Cyclopes
or partakes of their gigantic and powerful
nature. Thus the Cyclopes were said to be
responsible for the massive stone walls which
surround the palace-fortresses of the
Mycenaean period. And so cyclopean is used
generally to describe a primitive building style,
which uses immense, irregular, stone blocks,
held together by their sheer weight without
mortar.
Cynosure
The constellation Ursa Minor ("little bear")
was called Kunosoura ("the dog's tail") by the
astronomer Aratus, who saw in it one of the
nymphs who raised the infant Zeus. Long a
guiding star for seafarers, it has given us the
word cynosure which can describe anything
that serves to focus attention or give guidance.
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 Demon/demoniac/demonic/demonology
In Greek daimon was a word of rather fluid
definition. In Homer the Olympians are
referred to as either gods (theoi) or daimones
("divine powers"). In later literature the
daimones became intermediate beings between
gods and men or often the spirits of the dead
came to be called daimones, especially among
the Romans. Daimon could also denote that
particular spirit granted to each mortal at his
birth to watch over its charge. This corresponds
to the Roman Genius, a vital force behind each
individual, originally associated with male
fertility and particularly with the male head of
a household. Later it became a tutelary spirit
assigned to guide and shape each person's life.
With the triumph of Christianity, all pagan
deities were suspect, and daimon, viewed
solely as a power sprung from the devil,
became our demon (any evil or satanic spirit).
As an adjective demoniac or demonic
suggests possession by an evil on his back and
then rushed into the sea and made his way
toward Greece. When they reached Crete, Zeus
seduced Europa, who bore a son named Minos
and gave her name to a foreign continent. The
200
word Europe itself may be of Semitic origin,
meaning the land of the setting sun.
Faunus/faun/fauna/flora
Faunus, whose name means one who shows
favor, was a Roman woodland deity. He was
thought to bring prosperity to farmers and
shepherds and was often depicted with horns,
ears, tail, and sometimes legs of goat; therefore
he was associated with the Greek god Pan and
also Dionysiac satyrs. A faun comes to be
another name for a satyr. Faunus' consort was
Fauna, a female deity like hiim in nature.
Flora was another, though minor, agricultural
deity, a goddess of flowers, grain, and the
grape vine. When we talk of flora and fauna,
we refer respectively to flowers and animals
collectively,
Furies/furious/furioso
The Erinyes (Furies) were avenging spirits.
They sprang from the severed genitals of
Uranus, when drops of his blood fell to the
earth. They pursued those who had unlawfully
shed blood, particularly within a family. They
were said to rise up to avenge the blood of the
slain and pursue the murderer, driving the
guilty to madness. As chthonic deities they are
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associated with the underworld and are charged
with punishing sinners; they are usually
depicted as winged goddesses with snaky
locks. In English fury can refer to a fit of
violent rage or a person in the grip of such a
passion, especially a woman. The Latin
adjective furiosus has given us our adjective
furious as well as the musical term furioso,
which is a direction to play a piece in a
turbulent, rushing manner.
Gorgon/gorgoneion/gorgonian/gorgonize
The Gorgons were three sisters who had
snakes for hair and a gaze so terrifying that a
mortal who looked into their eyes was turned to
stone. Medusa, the most famous of the three,
was beheaded by Perseus, aided by Athena and
Hermes. Perseus gave the head to Athena, who
affixed it to her shield. The head of the gorgon
was often depicted in Greek art in a highly
stylized manner; this formalized depiction is
called a gorgoneion. Today a gorgon can mean
a terrifying or ugly woman. There is also a
species of coral known as gorgonian with an
intricate network of branching parts. The verb
to gorgonize means to paralyze by fear.
Halcyon/halcyon days
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 The mythical bird, the halcyon, is identified
with the kingfisher. Ceyx and Alcyone were
lovers. Ceyx, the king of Trachis, was drowned
at sea. Hera sent word to Alcyone in her sleep
through Morpheus, the god of dreams, that her
husband was dead. Alcyone in her grief was
transformed into the kingfisher; as she tried to
drag the lifeless body of Ceyx to shore, he too
was changed into a bird. The lovers still
traverse the waves, and in winter she broods
her young in a nest which floats upon the
surface of the water. During this time,
Alcyone's father, Aeolus, king of the winds,
keeps them from disturbing the serene and
tranquil sea. Today, the halcyon days are a
period of calm weather during the winter
solstice, especially the seven days preceding
and following it. Halcyon days can also
describe any time of tranquillity.
Paean
Paean was an epithet of the god Apollo,
invoked in a cry for victory in battle or for
deliverance from sickness. A paean thus
became a song of thanksgiving. Today it refers
to a song of joy or praise, whether to a god or a
human being.
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 Palladium
As a child Athena had a special girl friend
named Pallas, with whom she used to play at
war. During one of their skirmishes Athena
inadvertently killed Pallas and to her memory
she built a wooden statue of the girl. This
statue was thrown down to earth by Zeus,
where it became known as the Palladium, and
became for the Trojans a talisman for their city;
so long as they had possession of it, the city
would stand. Thus the English palladium
means a protection from harm for a people or
state, a lucky charm.
Pandora's box
Pandora was the first woman, given to men
as punishment for Prometheus' theft of fire.
Sent with her was ajar, which, when opened,
released all the ills that now plague human
beings. Later this jar became a box and now
pandora's box refers to something that should
be left unexamined, lest it breed disaster.
Panic
Panic describes a state of great fear and
anxiety with an attendent desire for flight,
which was considered inspired by the god Pan.
Phaeton
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 Helius, the sun-god, assured Phaethon that
he was truly his father and swore an oath that
his son could have anthing he desired.
Phaethon asked that he be allowed to drive his
father's chariot across the sky. Helius could not
dissuade the boy, and Phaethon could not
control the horses and drove to his death. A
phaeton has come into English as a four-
wheeled chariot drawn by two horses or an
earlier type of convertible automobile.
Procrustean/procrustean bed
Procrustes (the "one who stretches") was
encountered by Theseus. He would make
unwitting travelers lie down on a bed. If they
did not fit it exactly, he would either cut them
down or stretch them out to size. The adjective
Procrustean refers to someone or something
that aims at conformity through extreme
methods. A procrustean bed decribes a terrible,
arbitrary standard against which things are
measured.
Protean
Proteus was a sea god who could change
shape and who possessed knowledge of the
future. To obtain information. one had to
grapple with him until his metamorphoses
205
ceased. Protean means of changeable or
variable form, or having the ability to change
form.
Prometheus/promethean
The god Prometheus ("forethought"), son of
the titan lapetus, was the creator of humanity
and its benefactor. He bestowed upon mortals
many gifts that lifted them from savagery to
civilization. One of his most potent
benefactions was fire, which he stole from
heaven in a fennel stalk to give to mankind a
boon expressly forbidden by Zeus. As a
punishment for his championship of human
beings in opposition to Zeus, Prometheus was
bound to a rocky crag and a vulture ate at his
liver, which would grow back again for each
day's repast. Thus the name Prometheus
becomes synonymous for the archetypal
champion, with fire his symbol of defiance and
progress. The adjective Promethean means
courageous, creative, original, and life-
sustaining

Idioms from mythology and ancient

history

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 Achilles’ heed – the most vulnerable spot;
Alpha And Omega – the beginning and the
end;
as rich as Croesus – a vury rich person;
as wise as Solomon – a very wise person;
between Seylla and Charybdis – between
two equally disastrous alternatives (also:
between two fires, between the hummern and
the anvil);
cut he Gordian knot – to solve a difficult
problem quickly and boldly;
Janus-faced – having two contrasting
aspects or qualities;
Pandora’s box – a source of various
unforeseen troubles And evils;
Pyrrhic victory – a victory where the loss is
bigger than the gain;
Trojan Horse – something that is designed
to undermine or destroy from within;
work like a Trojan – to work very hard

Superstitions

A superstition is anything that people

207
believe that is based on myth, magic, or
irrational thoughts. They are beliefs.
Superstition is the fear of what is unknown and
mysterious. It is the belief that certain events
bring good or bad luck which cannot be
explained by reason or science. In short,
superstition means blind belief. Superstition is
a worldwide phenomenon. People in every
country believe in one or the other superstition.
Superstitions have come down to us from
ancient times. Primitive people were ignorant
about the wonders of science. They were at the
mercy of natural elements. They did not
understand the causes of physical changes
taking place around them. They respected and
worshipped the force of nature like the sun, the
moon, fire, wind, water, storms, etc. They
believed that diseases were caused by the wrath
of gods as well as evil spirits. They tried to
satisfy the gods with offerings, prayers,
sacrifices, etc. They tried to ward off evil
spirits by offering sacrifices.
There are certain common superstitions
which are shared by all the people in the world.
Belief in spirits, ghosts and witches; the cries
of certain birds like owl and ravens and
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mewing of cats are superstitions followed all
over the globe. It is also a common belief that
when comets are seen, they portend the death
of great man.
People in the West still regard '13' as an
unlucky number, because at the Last Supper,
Lord Jesus dined with his twelve disciples and
was later crucified. Salt was spilled on the table
on which they dined and, therefore, even now
spilling of salt is considered unlucky. They
consider Friday as an inauspicious day to start
a new work. They also believe that going under
a ladder brings ill-luck.
Certain hours and days are considered
inauspicious. People consult astrologers and
priests to know the auspicious hours, and days
to start their work, projects and journey.
Likewise, the time and date of marriage,
inauguration, foundation-laying ceremonies are
fixed according to the advice of astrologers and
the position of the planets and stars.
Superstitions can sometimes lead to
horrifying crimes. Women, who were
suspected of practicing witchcraft were tied
and burnt alive. Joan of Arc was burnt to death
because she was regarded by the English men
209
as a witch. Child sacrifices are made to please
gods.
Experiments are one to find out whether
man has a soul, which leaves him when he dies.
People are said to have confronted ghosts and
apparitions. But is remains to be proved that
ghosts do exists and possess the power. are
supposed to have. In some cases there are
scientific reasons behind superstitions. For
example, dogs are very sensitive to changes
around them. They become restless before the
onset of a natural calamity and one cannot
reject this superstitions which is backed by
scientific reasoning. In South India, people
apply sandalwood paste on their foreheads.
There is also a scientific reasoning behind it.
Sandalwood keeps the forehead cool.
The common matters or actions of day-today
life should not be looked at with a superstitious
motive. There is nothing wrong in sneezing. It
can come to a person at any time of the day.
So, if it comes when one is about to go out, on
should not complain. Similarly, when one goes
out, it is very natural that he is asked as to
where he is going. A cat crossing one path near
one's home means that one should check one's
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kitchen.
The world today is governed by science.
Science has made life easy and man has
advanced a lot. Superstitions have no
applications in today's life. So we should not
follow the superstitions that were passed on to
us by our ancestors. We should follow only the
ones which have scientific and logical basis. A
person believing in superstitions is always
haunted by unknown fears and anxieties. He
loses self-confidence. Education is one factor
that can wipe out superstitions to some extent.
A scientific outlook and temper should be
cultivated to do away with superstitions.
That are steeped in lore or tradition, and it is
usually difficult to pinpoint the exact origin.
Superstitions are also known as old wives'
tales, legends, and traditions. They may involve
animals, graveyards, ghosts, inanimate objects,
or even other people.
Most superstitions start in fact, and then
become distorted over years and years of use.
Others formed from religious beliefs. For
example, a popular superstition, that it is bad
luck to walk under a ladder, came from
Christian religion. The ladder makes a triangle
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with the wall and ground, representing the
Holy Trinity. Walking through the triangle,
under the ladder, meant that you were in league
with the devil, and might lead the other
villagers to condemn you as a witch.
There are different superstitions from all
over the world. In Japan, for example, it is
considered bad luck to stick chopsticks straight
up in a bowl of rice, or to pass them person to
person. To avoid a baby being born with a
facial birthmark, pregnant women in India
don't go outside during an eclipse. In Taiwan,
there is a superstition that says being a
bridesmaid more than twice is considered bad
luck.
A superstition is a belief or a practice that is
not based on facts or events that can be proven.
Many cultures around the world have
superstitions about numbers. Western tradition
is that the number thirteen is unlucky, but
seven is lucky. In Japan, it is numbers four and
nine that are considered unlucky. The number
four in both Chinese and Japanese is shi, which
is very close to the Japanese word for death,
and the number nine is similar to the word for
suffering.
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 Wishbones are another superstitious bringer-
of-good-luck! Have you ever pulled a
wishbone with a friend? The wishbone is one
of the bones you find when eating a chicken or
turkey. It's shaped like a "V," and each person
pulls one side of it. Whoever ends up with the
larger half has their wish come true! People
still believe in superstitions, both new and old.
In Ireland, and some other parts of Great
Britain, it was believed, that fairies spirited
away young wives, whom they returned dazed
and amnesic 366 days later.
When Halloween night fell, people in some
places dressed up and tried to resemble the
souls of the dead. They hoped that the ghosts
would leave peacefully before midnight. They
carried food to the edge of town or village and
left it for the spirits.
In Wales, they believed that the devil
appeared in the shape of a pig, a horse, or a
dog. On that night, every person marked a
stone and put it in a bonfire. If a person's stone
was missing the next morning, he or she would
die within a year.
Much later, when Christianity came to Great
Britain and Ireland, the Church wisely let the
213
people keep their old feast. But it gave it a new
association when in the 9th century a festival in
honour of all saints (All Hallows) was fixed on
November 1. In the llth century November 2
became All Souls' Day to honour the souls of
the dead, particularly those who died during the
year.
Christian tradition included the lighting of
bonfires and earring blazing torches all around
the fields. In some places masses of flaming
staw were flung into the air. When these
ceremonies were over, everyone returned home
to feast on the new crop of apples and nuts,
which are the traditional Halloween foods. On
that night, people related their experience with
strange noises and spooky shadows and played
traditional games.
Halloween customs today follow many of
the ancient traditions, though their significance
has long since disappeared.
A favourite Halloween custom is to make a
jack-j'-lantern. Children take out the middle of
the pumpkin, cut whole holes for the eyes, nose
and mouth in its side and, finally, they put a
candle inside the pumpkin to scare their
friends. The candle burning inside makes the
214
orange face visible from far away on a dark
night - and the pulp makes a delicious
pumpkin-pie.
People in England and Ireland once carved
out beets, potatoes, and turnips to make jack-o'-
lanterns on Halloween. When the Scots and
Irish came to the United States, they brought
their customs with them. But they began to
carve faces on pumpkins because they were
more plentiful in autumn than turnips.
Nowadays, British carve faces on pumpkins,
too.
According to an Irish legend, jack-o'-
lanterns were named for a man called Jack who
was notorious for his drunkenness and being
stingy. One evening at the local pub, the Devil
appeared to take his soul. Clever Jack
persuaded the Devil to "have one drink
together before we go". To pay for his drink the
Devil turned himself into a sixpence. Jack
immediately put it into his wallet. The Devil
couldn't escape from it because it had a catch in
the form of a cross. Jack released the Devil
only when the latter promised to leave him in
peace for another year. Twelve months later,
Jack played another practical joke on the Devil,
215
letting him down from a tree only on the
promise that he would never purse him again.
Finally, Jack's body wore out. He could not
enter heaven because he was a miser. He could
not enter hell either, because he played jokes
on the Devil. Jack was in despair. He begged
the Devil for a live coal to light his way out of
the dark. He put it into a turnip and, as the story
goes, is still wandering around the earth with
his lantern.
Halloween is something called Beggars'
Night or Trick or Treat night. Some people
celebrate Beggars' Night as Irish children did in
the 17th century. They dress up as ghosts and
witches and go into the streets to beg. And
children go from house to house and say:
"Trick or treat!", meaning "Give me a treat or
I'll play a trick on you".

I. Define the mythological words

respective to the following definitions.
1. One who is ever-vigilant or watchful;
2. A victory won at great loss to the victor;
3. Giving a bribe and thereby warding of an
unpleasant situation;
4. State of confusion;
216
 5. Something as unreal, imaginary, or
fantastic;
6. A primitive building style, which uses
immense, irregular, stone blocks.
7. Paralyzing by fear;
8. Courageus, creative, life-sustaining;
9. Anything that servers to focus attention or
give guidance;
10. A substance which adorns or decorates
the body.

II. Define the synonyms of the following

mythologisms:
Narcissistic; argus-eyed; bacchanalian;
jovial; chaotic; chimeric; cosmetician;
Syclopean; demonic/demoniac; furious;
gorgonian; halcyon; panic; promethean;
protean;

III. Match the following mythologisms to

their definitions

1. Achilles’ heel To solve a difficult

problem
2. Alpha and omega A source of various
unforseen troubles and
217
 evils
3. Between Scylla and having two contrasting
Charybdis aspects or qualities
4. Cut the Gordian the most vulnerable
knot spot
5. Janus-faced a victory where the
loss is bigger than the
gain
6. Pandora’s box the beginning and the
end
7. Pyrrhic victory a plan aimed at
destroying something
from vithin
8. Trojan horse to work very hard
9. To work like a between two fires
Trojan

IV. Answer the following questions

1. How did superstitions appear?
2. Why did people try to satisfy the gods
with sacrifices?
3. Why do people in the West regard «13» as
an unlucky number?
4. Who was Joan of Arc and why was she
burnt?

218
 5. Do you know any scientific reasons
behind superstitions?
6. What kind of superstitions may have
scientific and logical basis?
7. What is the role of education in wiping
out superstitions to some extent?
8. Why does walking under the ladder mean
mean that you are in league with the devil?
9. Why did people in some places dress up
and try to resemble the souls of the dead?
10. What is the meaning of «Trick or treat!»
said by children when Hallowen is celebrated?

219
 7. Religion – a source of word formation

Religion is a strong belief in a supernatural

power or powers that control human destiny.
Religion is a collection of belief systems,
cultural systems, and world views that relate
humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to
moral values. It was produced a long time ago.
Religion is an important part of human culture
and ideology. Language is connected with
religions unavoidably. Many religions have
narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred
histories that are intended to give meaning to
life or to explain the origin of life or the
Universe. They tend to derive morality, ethics,
religious laws or a preferred lifestyle from their
ideas about the cosmos and human nature.
Many religion words exist in current English.
Idioms as a part of language have some ones of
religious.
There are many borrowings connected with
spreading of Christianity. These words express
religious notions. They came to Britain in the
6th and 7th centuries. Rome Pope Gregory sent
his missionaries to Britain to convert them into
220
Christianity (English people were heathens at
that time). Latin was the language of
Christianity. So many religious terms entered
the English vocabulary. They are: monk, priest,
angel, candle, clerk, hymn, etc.
Christian religious speech, and other
religious speech forms as well, does not differ
from ordinary non-religious discourse as
spoken by these same Christians or by
adherents of the other religions. As we shall
see, this is rather important, but it does not
however dispense us from a further analysis at
the level of 'deep grammar', which will reveal
genuine differences between the use of
religious language and non-religious language.
The words used in a Christian religious context
are the same that one uses in daily speech:
'father', 'grace', pardon', etc., etc. The specific
technical terms of the language of faith that are
used in Christian discourse are relatively rare
and not indispensable, because they are
explainable by means of common terms.
Examples of such technical terms would be:
'prayer', 'salvation', 'redemption', etc. A goodly
number of these terms specific to Christian
discourse are of a practical and juridical nature,
221
for example: 'church', 'parish', 'chalice',
'bishop', etc., and in a number of cases are
taken from other languages, notably Latin and
Greek.
There exist forms of discourse peculiar to
guilds, social groups, age groups, etc. All of
these differences are found within a religious,
Christian, Catholic use of language as well. A
Catholic youth group develops its own group
language. Indeed every church movement has
its jargon. The great and varied forms of
Christian spirituality have all developed their
own terminology. These speech forms too must
be learned, and their diversity can create
problems. The way of using language in the
context of a particular religion (and also within
a particular movement), with words of special
significance (grace, Eucharist, penance} and
with a predilection for certain expressions
(way, path, exodus) serve also as a means of
identifying the group and the individual within
the group.
The Bible contains many different styles of
writing such as poetry, narration, fiction,
history, law, and prophecy and must be
interpreted in context of those styles. The King
222
James Version of the Bible has been
enormously influential in the development of
the English language. It ranks with the
complete works of Shakespeare and the Oxford
English Dictionary as one of the cornerstones
of the recorded language. After Shakespeare,
the King James, or Authorized Version of the
Bible is the most common source of phrases in
English. The Bible is the source of the
Christian religion, in that the Bible contains the
words of God and how the Christian is to apply
the words of God to his life. Some idioms came
from religion stories, figures and in the Bible.
So there are many examples:
"Woe is me" - meaning: I am distressed, sad,
grieved. Origin: This occurs in the Bible, Job
10:15 in the form 'woe unto me'. Job 10:15: If I
be wicked, woe unto me; and if I be righteous,
yet will I not lift up my head. I am full of
confusion; therefore see thou mine affliction;
Job is one of the oldest books in the Old
Testament, early versions of which date from
about 1200BC, making the phrase
3,200 years old in its original language. The
first occurrence of it in English would have
been Wycliffe's Bible translation in 1382.
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 "Old Adam", "Cain" - We can learn from the
Bible that Adam is our human's primogenitor.
He had did something wrong. Cain, Adam's
eldest son, has killed his younger brother. Then
Old Adam became the pronoun of human
being's original sin, and Cain the pronoun of
faction or rebellion.
"My Brother's Keeper" - This expression
symbolizes the unwillingness of people to
accept responsibility for the welfare of others
or for their behavior (in this case brother means
everyone) - in the Bible when Cain murdered
Abel, God asked Cain where his brother was
and rather than confessing, tried to cover up his
sin by answering in the form of the
question~"Am I my brother's keeper?"
"Can a leopard change its spots?" -
Meaning - Proverbial question, querying the
ability of any person or creature to change its
innate being. Origin - From the Bible, Jeremiah
13:23 (King James Version): Can the Ethiopian
change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then
may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do
evil.
"Fight the good fight" - Meaning: An
evangelical call to believe in and spread the
224
Christian faith. Origin of the words is from the
Bible, Timothy 6.12 (King James Version):
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal
life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast
professed a good profession before many
witnesses. The phrase was commonly used in
both the UK and the USA in the 19th century,
when those using it would have been well
versed in Biblical texts.
"As white as snow" - Meaning: Pure white.
What better to symbolise whiteness than snow?
Not only the intensity of colour on a bright
winter's day, but also the purity of untrodden
snow is summoned up by the simile. Chaucer,
Shakespeare and the Bible all contain versions
of idiom of "white as snow".
"All things must pass" - Meaning of the
idiom is nothing lasts forever. Origin is from
the Bible. "And ye shall hear of wars and
rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled:
for all these things must come to pass, but the
end is not yet. For nation shall rise against
nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and
there shall be famines, and pestilences, and
earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the
beginning of sorrows."
225
 "Three score and ten" - Meaning: The span
of a life. In the days that this was coined that
was considered to be seventy years. Origin:
Threescore used to be used for sixty, in the way
that we still use a dozen for twelve, and
(occasionally) score for twenty. It has long
since died out in that usage but is still
remembered in this phrase. Threescore goes
back to at least 1388, as in this from John
Wyclif s Bible, Leviticus 12, at that date: "Thre
scoor and sixe daies." There are numerous uses
of 'threescore1 in the Bible. Most of them refer
to its simple meaning as the number sixty, for
example:"...threescore and ten bullocks, an
hundred rams, and two hundred lambs: all
these were for a burnt offering to the Lord."
"The wages of sin is death" - Meaning:
Sinners will be cast into everlasting torment.
Origin: From the Bible, Romans 6:23 (King
James Version):For the wages of sin is death;
but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
"The bread of life" - The meaning is Jesus
Christ. There is a simple literal interpretation of
this phrase, which is - the food that we require
for physical sustenance. It is rarely used in that
226
way though and is most often use figuratively
to mean the spiritual food needed for a full life.
It is specifically used in that way by the
Christian church to refer to Jesus Christ. Origin
is from the Bible, John 6:35 (King James
Version): "And Jesus said unto them, I am the
bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never
thirst." Apart from the Bible, the earliest
reference to the phrase in literature is by Philip
Stubbes in his The anatomie of abuses, 1583:
"To breeke the bread of life to their charges."
"Physician, heal thyself - Meaning: Attend
to one's own faults, in preference to pointing
out the faults of others. The phrase alludes to
the readiness and ability of physicians to heal
sickness in others while sometimes not being
able or willing to heal themselves. This
suggests something of 'the cobbler always
wears the worst shoes', i.e. cobblers are too
poor and busy to attend to their own footwear.
It also
suggests that physicians, while often being
able to help the sick, cannot always do so and,
when sick themselves, are no better placed than
anyone else. Origin is From the Bible, Luke
227
4:23 (King James Version): And he said unto
them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb,
Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have
heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy
country. The text is usually interpreted to mean
that Jesus expected to hear the proverb said to
him in Nazareth, and that the people there
would expect him to work miracles in his
hometown as he had in other places.
"The salt of the earth" - Meaning: Those of
great worth and reliability. Origin: The phrase
'the salt of the earth' derives from the Bible,
Matthew 5:13 (King James Version): "Ye are
the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his
savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is
thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out,
and to be trodden under foot of men." The
positivity towards salt in this phrase conflicts
with many other uses of the word salt, which
has also been used express negative concepts;
for example, in the Middle Ages, salt was
spread on land to poison it, as a punishment to
landowners who had transgressed against
society in some way. It seems that the
'excellent' meaning in 'the salt of the earth 1 was
coined in reference to the value of salt. This is
228
reflected in other old phrases too, for example,
the aristocratic and powerful of the earth were
'above the salt' and valued workers were 'worth
their salt'. The salt of the earth' was first
published in English in Chaucer's Summoner's
Tale, circa 1386, although Chaucer
undoubtedly took his lead from Latin versions
of the Bible: "Ye been the salt of the erthe and
the savour."
"A man after my own heart" - Meaning -A
kindred spirit - someone I can agree with.
Origin -The term originates from the Bible
(King James Version).
Thus, we can also say more information
about linguistic usage with other religious
expressions. Most of these expressions have
their roots in a religious text but have now
entered in English language and are ofter used
in everyday conversation. Examples:
not know (someone) from Adam - to not
know someone at all I did not know the man
from Adam but he seemed to know me.
move heaven and earth to (do something) -
to make a major effort to do something. I will
move heaven and earth to try and get my friend
a new job.
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 bell, book, and candle - symbols of
witchcraft "I cannot do miracles. Do you
expect me to bring bell, book, and candle?"
pie in the sky - an idea or plan that is totally
impractical, a reward, a special heavenly
reward. The man always has ideas that are pie
in the sky and most of them are not very good.
play the devil's advocate - to argue against
or object to a proposition which one may
actually agree with - this is done purely to test
the validity of the proposition (the devil's
advocate was given the role of opposing the
making of a saint in the medieval Church in
order to prove that the grounds for canonization
were sound). I was playing the devil's advocate
when I began to ask the man questions.
rob Peter to pay Paul - to take from
someone or something in order to give to
someone or something else, to pay one debt by
getting another debt. The man was robbing
Peter to pay Paul when he borrowed money to
pay for his credit card debt.
thankful for small blessings - to be grateful
for any small benefits or advantages that one
has - especially in a generally difficult
situation. You must be thankful for small
230
blessings and try and enjoy every day.
there will be the devil to pay - there will be
much trouble. There will be the devil to pay if I
do not finish my homework tonight.
to hell and gone - a great distance. My friend
was to hell and gone before he remembered his
suitcase.
until hell freezes over - never. My uncle will
not leave his apartment until hell freezes over.
with all one's heart and soul - very sincerely.
The little boy wants a new bicycle with all his
heart and soul.
almighty dollar - money which can be
worshipped as a god, money is thought to be
more important and powerful than anything
else. My neighbor does not think of anything
except the almighty dollar.
as patient as Job - very patient (Job was a
person in the Bible). The man was as patient as
Job as he waited at the government office.
as poor as a church mouse - very poor. The
woman was as poor as a church mouse and had
no money.
The words used in a Christian religious
context are the same that one uses in daily
speech: 'father', 'grace', pardon', etc., etc.
231
 The specific technical terms of the language
of faith that are used in Christian discourse are
relatively rare and not indispensable, because
they are explainable by means of common
terms. Examples of such technical terms would
be: 'prayer', 'salvation', 'redemption', etc. A
goodly number of these terms specific to
Christian discourse are of a practical and
juridical nature, for example: 'church', 'parish',
'chalice', 'bishop', etc., and in a number of cases
are taken from other languages, notably Latin
and Greek.
Indeed every church movement has its
jargon. The great and varied forms of Christian
spirituality have all developed their own
terminology. These speech forms too must be
learned, and their diversity can create
problems.
This is seen in the difficulty in understanding
the special linguistic usage within the various
religions, even within Christianity and among
the diverse Christian denominations, as for
example, between Catholics and Evangelicals.
Even a person who genuinely possesses full
linguistic competence in his or her given
language can not understand this faith-specific
232
way of speaking, especially today. If he lives in
a culture which has not been determined by
Christianity, then he will surely either
misunderstand or simply ignore the Christian
way of speaking about God. Therefore one has
to learn religious linguistic usage. And we can
say more information about linguistic usage
with religious idioms and expressions. So
version of the King James Bible is the most
common source of religious phrases in English.
The land of Nod “Sleep”. Origin - We now
usually think of The Land of Nod' as a
mythical place, where we go to when we sleep.
Nod was indeed a mythical location, but it was
originally a place of anguished exile rather than
of peaceful sleep. The very first few pages of
the Bible refer to Nod, and locate it 'East of
Eden' and it is where Cain dwelt after being
cast out by God after Cain's murder of his
brother Abel. 'East of Eden', being clearly not
in Eden (Paradise) has also been taken up into
the English language as a place/state of
considerable discomforture. Forms of both
phrases were published in early versions of the
bible, but it is the forms in the King James
Version that are now best remembered, Genesis
233
4:16:
Forbidden fruit
Meaning - A prohibited article. Origin -
forbidden fruit. Forbidden fruit originates from
the Garden of Eden bible story. The biblical
'forbidden fruit' was of course the apple. In the
story the type of fruit isn't actually mentioned -
God forbade Adam and Eve to touch the fruit
of the tree of knowledge. It is widely
interpreted as being an apple though and the
'Adam's apple' is named after the fruit which is
supposed to have stuck in Adam's throat.
Genesis 2:9 (King James Version) And out of
the ground made the LORD God to grow every
tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for
food; the tree of life also in the midst of the
garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and
evil. 2:16 And the LORD God commanded the
man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou
mayest freely eat: 2:17 But of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat
of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou
shalt surely die. 3:3 But of the fruit of the tree
which is in the midst of the garden, God hath
said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye
touch it, lest ye die.
234
 Pearls before swine
Meaning-Items of quality offered to those
who aren't cultured enough to appreciate them.
- to waste something good on someone who
does not care about it (as you would if you put
some pearls or something valuable before a
pig) Origin- This expression is usually
expressed in the negative proverbial form -
'don't cast your pearls before swine', and is
found in the Bible, It had existed in the
language for some time before that, in various
forms. The biblical text is generally interpreted
to be a warning by Jesus to his followers that
they should not offer biblical doctrine to those
who were unable to value and appreciate it.
Most of other expressions have their roots in
a religious text but have now entered the
English language and are often used in
everyday conversation. act high-and-mighty -
to act proud and powerful (this idiom is almost
almost always used in a negative way) Our
boss always acts high-and-mighty when he is at
a meeting.
almighty dollar - money which can be
worshipped as a god, money is thought to be
more important and powerful than anything
235
else. My neighbor does not think of anything
except the almighty dollar.
an act of God - something (an accident) for
which no human is responsible, an act of nature
such as a storm/earthquake/hurricane . The
accident was an act of God when the rocks
came onto the highway.
as hot as hell - very hot. It was as hot as hell
in the movie theater.
as patient as Job - very patient (Job was a
person in the Bible) Our neighbor
was as patient as Job.
bear one's cross - to endure one's
difficulties, to bear one's burden. My job is
terrible but I must bear my cross and
continue to do it.
bell, book, and candle - symbols of
witchcraft (ovsunculuq) "I cannot do
miracles. Do you expect me to bring bell,
book, and candle?"
better to be a live dog than a dead lion - it is
better to be a live coward than a dead hero (this
is from Ecclesiastes in the Bible) It is better to
be a live dog than
a dead lion so I walked away and did not try
and fight with the man.
236
 by guess and by golly - by luck, with the
help of God (Golly has the meaning of God)
By guess and by golly I was able to arrive at
the airport on time.
catch the devil - to receive a severe scolding.
The little boy will catch the devil if he arrives
home late.

Religious meaning of colours

The colors that we see here on the earth

realm are only a portion of what is in heaven.
From Genesis to Revelations the Word of God
is full of symbolic (biblical) color meaning. So
the colors have religious meanings, too. For
example: Red: symbolizes blood atonement;
sacrifice of Christ's blood; covenant of grace;
cleansing justification; sin, atonement; war; the
wrath of God; judgment; death; love; life; the
earth; redemption; sacrifice; consuming fire;
the person of Jesus; the cross; refers to flesh.
Isaiah: 1:18, Hebrew 9:14. Gold or Yellow:
Symbolizes the Glory of God ; divine nature;
holiness; eternal deity; the Godhead;
Purification; majesty; righteousness; divine
light; kingliness; trial by fire; mercy; power;
237
His Deity; Glory. Bronze: Judgment upon sin;
fires of testing. Brown: Man as we are on earth.
Green: Praise, eternal life, vigor, prosperity,
mercy, restoration, health, healing, new
beginning, freshness, God's holy seed, harvest,
sowing and reaping, immortality, fresh oil, new
life, joy in hope.
Blue: Symbolizes the heavenly realm;
prayer; priesthood; authority; revealed God;
grace; divinity; Holy Spirit; overcomer;
revelation knowledge; the Truth; the Word of
God; the Word; Messiah.
Purple: Symbolizes Jesus' royalty; believer's
royalty; majesty; wealth; power; penitence; the
name of God; kingdom authority; dominion.,
son-ship; the promises of God; inheritance;
mediator; inheritance; priesthood. White:
Symbolizes Creator; righteousness acquired
through blood of Christ; Bride's garment;
salvation; surrender; holiness, saints; angels,
peace; triumph; victory; glory; joy; light.
2. Black: Righteous Judgment; Death; Death
of old self; Famine; Mourning; Evil;
Humiliation; Affliction; Calamity Primordial
color of creation; Sign of humiliation.

238
 I. Match the following English idioms to
their respective dictionary definitions

1. Religion A am distressed, sad,

grieved
2. Woe is me Sinners will be cast
into everlasting
torment
3. My Brother’s Jesus Christ
keeper
4. Three score and ten A prohibited article
5. The wages of sin is A strong belief in a
death supernatural power
6. The bread of life Unwillingness of
people to accept
responsibility for the
welfare of others
7. Forbidden fruit The span of a life
8. A man after my An idea or plan that is
own heart totally impractical
9. More heaven and To take from some
earth to do something one or something in
order to give someone
or something else.
10. Pie in the sky A kindred spirit

239
11. Rob Peter to pay To make a major
Paul effort to do something

II. Use the following religious idioms to

make up a story:
— «can a leopard change its spots?»;
— «All things must pass»;
— «Physician, heal thyself»;
— «The salt of the earth»;
— «Play the devils’s advocate»;
— «Thankful for small blessings;
— With All one’s heart and soul»
III. Define the religious idioms to match
to the following definitions:
— Symbols of witchcraft;
— There will be much trouble;
— A great distance;
— Money is thought to be more important
and powerful than anything else;
— Very poor;
— Items of quality offered to those who
aren’t cultured enough to appreciate them;
— A reward, a special heavenly reward;
— Never.

240
241
 8. Slangs – the depth of the language

Slang can be described as informal,

nonstandard words or phrases (lexical
innovations) which tend to originate in
subcultures within a society. Slang often
suggests that the person utilizing the words or
phrases is familiar with the hearer's group or
subgroup — it can be considered a
distinguishing factor of in-group identity.
Slang expressions often embody attitudes and
values of group members. In order for an
expression to become slang, it must be widely
accepted and adopted by members of the
subculture or group. Slang has no societal
boundaries or limitations as it can exist in all
cultures and classes of society as well as in all
languages.
Slang expressions are created in basically
the same way as standard speech. Expressions
may take form as metaphors, similes, and other
figures of speech. In addition, it is noted that
the words used as slang may be new coinages,
existing words may acquire new meanings,
narrow meanings of words may become
242
generalized, words may be abbreviated, etc.
However, in order for the expression to
survive, it must be widely adopted by the
group who uses it. Slang is a way in which
languages change and are renewed. Slang was
the main reason for the development of
prescriptive language in an attempt to slow
down the rate of change in both spoken and
written language.
Foreign words are a common resource for
the development of slang, as are regional
variations of standard words. Likewise, slang
may incorporate "elements of the jargons of
special-interest groups (e.g., professional,
sport, regional, criminal). Slang is lexical
innovation within a particular cultural
context. Sometimes these foreign words and
regional variations become part of the standard
language.
Cool: This popular expression is used to
describe something that is very good. Ex:
"That band is cool!"
Chill: This can mean to calm down, for
example, "Chill out, I say" It also can have
an "-in" ending added to mean to relax, as in
"We're just chilling at my house."
243
 Stinks: When used as a slang term, this
means "is bad." For example: "This exam
stinks."
Trollin: Used to describe a car or cars
traveling slower than the flow of traffic.
Example: "This car is really trollin."
Cheers - This word is obviously used when
drinking with friends. However, it also has
other colloquial meanings. For example when
saying goodbye you could say "cheers", or
"cheers then". It also means thank you.
Americans could use it in English pubs.
Cracking - If something is cracking, it
means it is the best. Usually said without
pronouncing the last "G". If a girl is cracking it
means she is stunning.
Cram - Before a big exam you would be
expected to cram. This simply means to study
hard in the period running up to the exam.
Dishy - If someone is a bit of a dish or a bit
dishy it means they are attractive or good
looking.
Dodgy - If someone or something is a bit
dodgy, it is not to be trusted. Dodgy food
should be thrown away at home, or sent back
in a restaurant. Dodgy people are best
244
avoided.
Dog's dinner - If you make a real mess of
something it might be described as a real dog's
dinner. A bit like some joint Anglo-American
approaches to Eastern Europe for example!
Donkey's years - It means not to see
someone for ages.
Duck - In and around Leeds you will find
older people might call you "duck" in the same
way that they might call you "love" or "dear" in
other places.
Duff - Anything that is duff is useless, junk,
trash. It usually means that the object doesn't
do the job it was intended for.
Fagged - If you are too lazy or tired to do
something you could say "I can't be fagged". It
means you can't be Bothered.
Fagging - Fagging is the practice of
making new boys at boarding schools into
slaves for the older boys. If you are fagging
for an older boy you might find yourself
running his bath, cleaning his shoes or
performing more undesirable tasks.
Fancy - If you fancy something then it
means you desire it. There are two basic forms
in common use - food and people. If you fancy
245
a cake for example it means you like the look
of it and you want to eat it.
Fanny around - I'm always telling people to
stop fannying around and get on with it. It
means to procrastinate. Drives me mad!
Filch - To filch is to steal or pilfer.
Fit - it seems to be making a comeback. A
fit bird means a girl who is pretty good -
looking
Flog - To Flog something is to sell it. It also
means to beat something with a whip, but when
your wife tells you she flogged the old TV it is
more likely she has sold it than beaten it
(hopefully!).
Fluke - If something great happened to you
by chance that would be a fluke. When I was a
kid my Mum lost her engagement ring on the
beach and only realised half way home. We
went back to the spot and she found it in the
sand. That was a fluke.
Fortnight - Two weeks. Comes from an
abbreviation of "fourteen nights". Hence terms
like "I'm off for a fortnights holiday" meaning
"I am going on a two week vacation".
Get lost! - Politely translated as go away,
this is really a mild way of telling somebody
246
'go away'
I. Match the following English idioms to their respective dictionary
definitions:
1. Cool It is the best
2. Trollin Mess of something
3. Cracking Not to see someone for
ages
4. Dishy Useless, junk
5. Dog’s dinner A girl who is pretty
goodloking
6. Donkey’s years Go away
7. Duff A car travelling slower
than the flow of traffic
8. Fit Good looking
9. Get lost! Very good

II. Choose the slang respective to their

dictionary definitions:
1. This car is travelling slower than the flow of
traffic.
2. This band is very good.
3. This boy studies very hard for his exams.
4. In this city older people might call you
«love» or «dear».
5. She is pretty good-looking.

247
6. This car is useless.
7. She makes a real mess of meal.
8. I have not seen you for ages.
9. This story is not to be trusted.
10. That girl is very attractive.

248
 9. Onamasticon as a link between the
culture
and the language

English proper names include people's

names and surnames (John Smith, Mary
Brown), geographical names (Africa, the
Thames), names of institutions (the United
Nations, the British Museum), places in the
city (Central Park, Fifth Avenue), historical
and other events (the French Revolution, the
Jazz Festival). English proper nouns also
include nationalities (Russian, Irishman),
weekdays (Tuesday, Saturday), months
(January, May), and other notions, objects, and
places that are capitalized and used as names.
(The use of articles with people's names,
geographical names, and other proper names is
described in the materials on English articles in
the section Pharaselogy.
There are many idiomatic expressions that
contain proper names. The same as other
idioms, they came from people's everyday life,
folklore, prose and poetry, myths, fairy tales,
fables, songs, slang, and other sources.
249
 Quite a few idioms with proper names are
familiar to people of different nationalities,
and it's natural that a student of English wants
to know how to say those colorful expressions
in English. It should be stressed, though, that
idioms with proper names are not used in
speech or writing often. For example, we all
know such expressions as Pyrrhic victory; as
wise as Solomon; Uncle Sam. But how often
do we actually use them? Generally, we prefer
more neutral phrases in everyday speech
Also, some idioms containing people's
names, names of nationalities, cities, or
countries may be perceived as offensive
stereotypes and cliches, and should be avoided
proverbs with proper names. They include
idioms that are still in use as well as some
bookish or outdated expressions.

Idioms with people's names

Barbie Doll - an attractive but mindless

person (man or woman); before you could say
Jack Robinson – «very quickly»;
Doubting Thomas - a skeptic; a person who
refuses to believe without clear proof; every
250
Tom, Dick and Harry - any / every ordinary
man; Gl Joe - an American soldier;
Jack of all trades - a person who is able to do
many manual jobs;
Joe Blow / Joe Doakes - an average citizen;
John Bull - a typical Englishman; the English
people;
John Doe - 1. an unnamed person in legal
proceedings; 2. an anonymous average citizen;
John Hancock - a person's signature;
Johnny-come-lately - a newcomer; a
participant who started later than the others, but
achieved more success.
Jolly Roger - a pirate flag;
Keep up with the Joneses - to try to achieve
the same social position and wealth as one's
neighbors or acquaintances;
Mister Right (or Miss Right) - the person one
would like to marry; a perfect match;
Mr. Nice Guy - a very decent, friendly man;
Peeping Tom - a person who secretly watches
other people undressing;
The real McCoy - the genuine thing, not an
imitation;
Rob Peter to pay Paul - to borrow from one
to give to another;
251
 Tommy Atkins - a British soldier;
Uncle Sam -the U.S.; the U.S. government.

Idioms with the names of countries,

cities, streets,
and nationalities

be Greek to someone - to be completely

unintelligible to someone;
the Big Apple - the nickname of New York
City;
Black Russian - a cocktail made from coffee
liqueur and vodka;
Carry coals to Newcastle - to bring
something to a place which has plenty of such
things already;
Double Dutch - completely unintelligible
language, especially technical jargon;
French leave - departure without goodbye,
notice, or permission;
Go Dutch - to pay for oneself (in a
restaurant, movie, theater);
Grin like a Cheshire cat - to smile or grin
252
inscrutably;
Indian summer - a period of warm
weather in autumn;
In plain English - in simple, understandable
language;
In Queer Street – in financial instability, in
difficulty or trouble;
Madison Avenue – the advertising industry
of the United States;
meet one’s Waterloo – to be defeated;
on Easy Street – in wealth, in financial
security and comfort;
Pardon my French – used as an apology for
vulgar or or obscene language;
Silicon Valey – the world of computers and
high technology;
Utopian dreams/schemes – beautiful but
impracticable plans;
Wall Street – American Money market;
American financial oligarchy.
Idioms with the names of months and
days
April fool – the victim of a jokee played on
April Fools’ Day;
as mad as a March hare – a mad or peculiar
person;
253
 May queen – a girl crowned with flowers
and honored as queen on May Day;
Blue Monday – Monday as a depressing
workday after Sunday;
Black Friday – any Friday on which
financial or other misfortunes happen;
girl Friday – a low-ranking office assistant
with various duties;
man Friday – a true servant;
a month of Sundays – a very long Time;
Sunday best/Sunday clothes – one’s best
clothes for special occasions;
Sunday driver – an inexperienced diriver;
Sunday School – school for religious
instruction on Sundays;
when two Sundays come together – never.

Proverbs with proper names

Proverbs with proper names may exist in
serveral variants: I fear the Greeks even when
bringing gifts; I fear the Greeks bringing gifts;
I fear the Greeks bearing gifts.
Because proverbs are widely known, people
often say just part of a proverb: Greek gifts;
Greek gift (i.e. a gift from an enemy may be
dangerous).
254
 All roads lead to Rome.
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
An Englishman’s home is his castle.
April showers bring forth May flowers.
Bacchus has drowned more men than
Neptune.
Caesar’s wife must be above suspicion.
East or West, home is best.
If the mountain will not come to Mahomet,
Mahomet must go to the mountain.
Jack is no judge of Jill’s beauty.
Jack of all trades is master of none.
March comes in like a lion and goes out like
a lamb.
Render to Gaesar the things that are
Caesar’s.
Rome was not built in a day.
Too far East is West.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

I. «Find out personal names respective to

the following definitions:
1. A person who is able to do many
manual jobs;
2. A typical Englishman;
3. An attractive but mindless person;
255
 4. An anonymous average citizen;
5. A participent who started later than the
others, but achieved more success;
6. To try to achieve the same social position
and wealth as one’s neighbours or
acquaintances;
7. To borrow from one to give to another;
8. The U.S. government;
9. A very decent friendly man.
II. Match the given names to the
respective definitions:

1. Be Greek to some to bring something to

one a place which has
plenty of such things
already
2. Keep up with A person who
Joneses secretly watches
other people
undressing
3. Peeping Tom Completely
unitelligible language,
especially technical
jargon
4. Black Russian To be completely
unintelligible to
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 someone
5. Carry coals to To try to achieve te
Newcastle saame pozition
6. Double Dutch A cocktail made from
coffee ligeur and
vodka
7. French leave İn simple,
understandable can
8. Go Dutch Departure without
goodbye
9. In plain English A period of warm
weather in autumn
10. Indian summer To pay for oneself (in
a restaurant, etc.)

III. Answer the fallowing questions.

1. Why is the notion of carrying coals to
Newcastle associated with unnecessity of doing
anything?
2. Why is the ethnonym Greek associated
with the uninteligibleness?
3. Why does the expression «Mister Right»
denote a perfect match?
4. Why does expression Uncle Sam mean the
U.S.Government?

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 5. Why is the expression Double Dutch
aaaociated with unintelligible language?
6. Why is the departure without goodbye
referred to the French?
7. Why did the names of persons, cities,
nations, etc. start denoting different additional
meanings?
8. Is the usage of names in additional
colourful meanings connected with objective
features or subjective approach.

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